Avatar of a Thundercat
by shiro-wolfman-k
Summary: Magic has created a new magical being for the world meant to live in symbiosis with magicals, by mere coincidence Harry Potter ends with said creature that now insist in the need to spawn it's kind for the sake of the whole world. H/L/Hr NOT A CROSSOVER
1. Chapter 1

**BEWARE: My first language it's Spanish, I am learning English by my own volition, without help of a teacher.**

**This mean that the story had a lot of mistakes, if you can't deal with that, then find another story to read because you will not enjoy this. **

**IF you are still here and you are going to give me a chance, good, if you want to put your opinion on a review about a grammar mistake or other kind's of horrors in my writings, please feel free to do so, it's welcomed.**

**Many thanks to Paladeus who encouraged me to write this, to the Sage of Seals, who was my first BETA, to Slicerness and A. Blackwell for helping me with the outcome of the story, without them this would be a unreadable disaster.**

**I**t was four in the afternoon and the sky was covered in gray clouds, almost darkened to a deep purple. An occasional flash within the layers of the sky revealed what everyone in the community dreaded.

The children were running to the safety of their homes in a desperate attempt to escape the inevitable; to flee the terrible explosions and power in the vaulted clouds. With each new blast, the screams of a woman were easily audible, irrationally afraid despite a near-guaranteed protection.

Families were clustered, parents trying to calm children. Some simply took comfort in the innocence of the youth. Others were left trying to convince themselves that there was no danger, that their homes would protect them from the worst.

The first sign of the inevitable came with a terrible gale, pursued closely by the sound of water rushing by and about the land. It was the beginning of the biggest storm ever seen in the town of Little Whinging. Families watched in morbid fascination, feeling safe within their walls, even from nature's own wrath. Some almost enjoyed looking at the event, fully convinced that there was nothing to worry about, that man had long overcome these natural hazards.

Others simply remained silent, watching the spectacle.

The heavens were divided into a flowing spectrum of colors, continuous flashes adorned with splendor. Lightning, followed closely by thunder, decorated the sky for a few brief seconds, striking with a crack of blue ozone and plasma.

In Privet Drive, a community of households residing in the far side of Little Whinging, the situation was the same, except for the presence of a young man, fourteen years old.

He was miserable and wet, shivering and distraught with his situation. His hair black as night once rebellious and uncontrollable was now glued to his head completely wet by the rain. His pale skin, thanks to the cold air, was highlighted more than usual, giving him a spectral appearance.

His clothes, too big for him, clung to his body, bringing the intense cold close to his chest. His pants, even held by a belt, threatened to fall off, weighing him down. The young man was flecked with mud and silt, which were gradually washed away by the relentless rain.

The neighbors were unaware of the scene. It was not their business after all, to become involved with such circumstances. Nobody would feel even slightly sorry for the offender, obviously suffering a well-deserved punishment. Ignorant of this, the boy went on, now cleaning the gutters. He was resigned to his situation. A denial or mere thought of the passing time would only make things worse, so he accepted his fate. He apparently was used to such, believing that he deserved what he was suffering

Harry James Potter shakily brushed a stray bit of hair out of his eyes, and reached back up to continue his work.

His hands shook profusely. '_I must be crazy._' He thought dryly. '_Crazy not to be afraid of this storm…but then again, I've seen worse' ._Explosions and flashing lights lit up the sky, but part of him felt guilty for being alive, to retain the very ability to fear, when Cedric would never do it again. He rebuked himself, finding the constant complaining pathetic. He deserved this and much more, he had failed all of them. He had failed the second that monster had come back from his place beyond the grave.

The moment of reflection only caused the boy to work with more fervor than before. Harry's weight shifted, and the gutter gave way, falling violently to the ground below. He followed closely, hitting his head against twisted metal, only just before he reached the ground.

His glasses did not survive the impact. His face bled profusely, the sharp edges of the gutter carving into his cheek and forehead, missing his eyes by a hairs width. Dust and other waste plastered his face, further increasing his humiliation. For a moment his vision blurred as a wave of dizziness washed over him. He quietly stifled a sob; it would do no good here.

In the background he could hear the angry voice of his uncle, taunts, and outraged screams blending together, though never concerning his welfare. Soon Petunia had joined her husband's side, shouting because he had dared to fall on her precious flowers. Dudley, his cousin, was laughing in full swing, making fun and shouting insults, malice and glee glittering in his beady eyes.

Harry couldn't even hear them; his chest was tight, his head would not stop hurting, and his eyes burned with the dirt and blood that went into them. He tried to appease his conscience, shouting angrily to accept such words without contest, as he considered himself unworthy of mercy. Not when Cedric's death still hung over his head, or when the evidence of his defeat against Voldemort was still fresh and strong.

Then a great light flashed around them, completely blinding him. It was followed closely by a huge explosion that deafened him, obscuring the screams of his 'family'.

For a moment, Harry believed himself dead. He could no longer feel the pain of his wounds or the impact of raindrops on his skin, much less the cold or the gutters torn beneath his body. Not even the hard ground could be felt.

_'Great!' _Harry thought angrily to himself, ignoring the fury in his mind. _'Who would imagine? I survive Voldemort, only to die__ from a fall when cleaning a gutter.'_

There was a hint of madness, even desperation in his thoughts. He wished it was all over, not having to face the pressure of returning to a world where everyone was disappointed in him, disappointed in his failures and inability.

A world where all would observe him as a reminder of the death of Cedric; why return, after all, when he was only an outcast, and a half-blood? He couldn't live up to their expectations. He was exhausted from seeing the faces of those waiting to be saved, yet would do nothing to even try and help themselves! He had to do it_for _them. That was his job, to resolve the situation. After all, he was Harry _bloody _Potter.

It was then that he heard a rumble, a sound he knew very well thanks to the many cats of the batty Ms. Figg. He tried to ignore it, believing it to be one of her pesky beasts. But the animal insisted; in fact, every second, the purring increased in power, up until the point where ignoring it was no longer a possibility. For more than a moment, Harry was confused. What cat could cause such uproar? In fact, the sound had changed, and now reminded Harry of when certain machines would hum with electrical power.

He opened his eyes, finding himself in a world full of white, infinite in all directions. There were no directions, no up or down without sky or earth, only a perennial horizon.

The sound came from everywhere and from nowhere. Solidifying his belief that he really was dead. His wounds were gone, he could see perfectly even though he was not wearing his glasses, the pain in his chest and his head where gone, and his body, was warm, no longer cold from rain on his clothes. At least it felt painless to Harry; he could not truly feel anything. In fact, he was naked, just as he had come into the world, free from physical possession, only clothed within his skin, stripped and free of his protective barriers. He was frightened, despite his thoughts of the death and punishment he believed he deserved. No living being would truly wish to die. The body, even when the mind is broken, would fight to the last breath to maintain his life.

Harry's heart raced to a breaking point in his chest, threatening to explode. He felt fear now that he was only spirit in Limbo, but that fear only seemed to increase the intensity of the sound to the point where it no longer sounded like a purr, but rather a low and dangerous roar.

So he ran.

For hours, without any sense of direction, Harry ran, now desperate to find his way back, back to the world of the living, but to no avail. The sound of thunder resounded throughout every fiber of his being, and Harry fell to the ground, twitching in shock and confusion.

It was then that he knew he was not dead; after all, there was no pain in the afterlife…or was there? He smiled, closely followed by a laugh, though that soon died in his throat when a new question flashed through his mind, overpowering his thought centers and infusing him with a sense of panic and hopelessness.

_'Where am I? What's happening?'_

The answer, or something close enough to it, came quickly in the form of a lightning strike not five feet from where he had fallen. For a full second, the light blinded him, but when his vision cleared, Harry took an unconscious step back in fear.

Right where the impact had occurred, was a huge lion, which growled deep inside of its throat.

Harry yelped in surprise and fear, trying desperately to move, only to discover to his horror, that he could not move his feet, and was trapped here at the animal's mercy. The beast roared thunderously, the sound of it crashing down upon his ears like the strike of lightning itself.

It was then that Harry noticed something odd about this particular lion.

Its skin glowed a deep blue with a mauve aura surrounding it, clear grey eyes staring straight and without pupils. The lion's tail was spiked in the end, rocking back and forth, almost as if in interest, perhaps in interest of prey. Its legs were heavily built, lengthy and strong. The creature's fur, strangely enough, seemed soft, and Harry did not need to see to know that under each pad on the lion's feet were lethal claws, just waiting to be used.

The young wizard was absorbed, consumed entirely, by the appearance of this majestic animal. This being that _commanded_respect and fear, exuding waves of power and strength. Harry couldn't help but focus his eyes on the giant feline, unable to tear his vision away, yet noticing idly with a kind of surprise that the thing gave off a kind of smoke, dispersing into the air and adding a true sense of mystery and grandeur to this King of the Animals.

The huge cat closed its eyes and a presence, huge and alien, touched Harry's mind.

Harry shuddered. '_What…what are you?'_

_I am._

He shook his head. '_No…really, what __**are **__you?' _Harry felt a sense of wariness from the animal, but it soon gave way to a feeling of need, and of urgency.

And it told him.

The magic of and in the world had, in short, created a new species, one that needed a host body in which it could exist as a symbiote. Eventually both could live apart, not for long, but it gave an air of freedom, strength, and eternal company that the boy was under pressure not to reject. Like many such creatures created by the wild flow of magic, there was only a small chance for it to prosper and spread, creating others of its kind, following which it would disappear, never to step into the realm of reality again. Harry would be the first, if only for a while.

Harry shook his head.

He couldn't refuse. He understood in many ways the sense of survival that the creature gave off. He too did not wish to die, forgetting his previous problems that now seemed so small. Harry, used to the sensation, therefore resigned himself to be even more unusual.

Harry agreed to be the only guest in the world of a Thundercat, the first of many to come.

The beast let out a roar that Harry could only interpret as euphoria, before flowing towards him and merging in a single flash.

Harry woke up in the position where he had fallen. His bloodstained face was slowly being washed clean by rain, even as his wounds closed, his pain disappeared, and his sight was restored, even without his glasses. He was disoriented for a few moments, before the Vernon's hand yanked him up by the collar of his soaked shirt, the man's usual way of picking Harry up from the ground. Harry was nearly suffocated for a few seconds, struggling for air, before the cat inside him decided that enough was enough, releasing a heavy surge of electrical power.

The overweight Dursley shouted in both surprise and pain, flinging himself, twitching, to the ground. The cries of Dudley and Petunia rose above the thunder of the storm; now Vernon was on the floor, motionless, breathless and completely pale. Harry was terrified.

He hated the Dursleys, but he didn't want them dead, let alone to be the cause of that death! Harry ran toward his uncle, finding that the body was still warm. The beast within his mind refused to revive the fat man, but Harry, finding courage and aggressiveness he did not know he have, ordered the lion to obey his command, and to his total surprise, the animal did as it was told. A current of electrical energy poured from Harry's hands into the man's chest, restarting his heart. Vernon sucked air furiously, filling his lungs as much as he could to ensure himself that he was still alive.

He slowly raised his arms, sitting on his large rear as he looked from one place to another, trying to place himself. Petunia finally shot out of the house with an umbrella in hand, frantic to protect her husband's body from the torrential downpour. Dudley hid behind the door, watching Harry with something that could only be identified as simple and pure terror. Petunia stopped a few feet away, not even approaching him, only just enough to talk to her husband without the need to yell.

Vernon rose, seeming insecure and confused. He looked at Harry for a few seconds.

"Go to your room."

He didn't spit, and stranger still, he didn't even make it sound like an order. Vernon simply asked Harry to leave, and Harry fled to the room. Petunia's breath hitched, and she dashed into the house, cradling Vernon in her bony arms. (Or at least trying.)

Dudley moved away from the door. He grunted and shook, almost as if it had burned him. Harry ignored him, and dashed up the stairs to his bedroom. He tried, futilely, to ignore the heavy beating of his heart.

The cat did not mind. While it could not, _would _not, relax after that experience, it and the young wizard all but begged for rest, and nothing would stand in their way.

Harry collapsed onto his bed, and closed his eyes.

**TBC**


	2. Chapter 2

**T**he first thing that Harry noticed was that he was in his bed, still in his room on Privet Drive. He slowly rolled to be into a better position, ending with him eying the decrepit roof that seemed ready to crumble.

He closed his eyes, trying to get back to sleep, when the cat decided that he had gotten enough sleep. Urging him to get outside and find something to calm his now very awake stomach. Harry grumbled, remembering that he was now a half-magical being, one that never existed before. Harry, as usual, was angsting over the idea, so the cat soon decided that it had had enough of his whining and growled lowly in his mind.

Harry looked outside of the window, finding that it was still dark outside. He checked his almost working castoff table watch, seeing a big '5' in the screen. He couldn't know the exact hour, of course, thanks to the rest of the screen being completely broken thanks to one of Dudley's fits of rage. Harry had, of course, only received the watch _after _it had been deemed beyond repair.

He knew that his Aunt usually would wake up at six fifteen, give or take fifteen minutes, to wake him up so he could do the morning breakfast and chores. But the cat was against those routines, in fact, he was almost imploring for a workout, and if not that, then at least a chance to walk outside these suffocating four walls.

So that was how Harry found himself in the kitchen. He felt almost curious, after taking care of the morning necessities, to know why his relatives had not descended at the first signal or rather, smell, that he was already cooking without their permission. He ignored it, though; because the cat asked him to, declaring that it was a waste of their time to think about it.

Not that the cat could really talk with him. It was more like the animal could transmit emotions, feelings, and commands, things that he just intuitively understood. It was like having an annoying conscience, one that often wanted to fry everything that stood in its way. This, of course, was something that Harry was still trying to explain to the beast. In other words, that it was NOT a good idea. But the cat simply didn't want to listen, insisting that every predator could simply scare or kill anything annoying it. Except, of course, the children, as every father and mother HAS to suffer the wraith of a hungry child demanding to be fed.

So Harry decided that it was for the best to ignore the lack of Dursleys for now. The cat had quite clearly demanded that if Harry didn't properly use their body, it would do it _for _him, in order to guarantee that anyone that defied its dominance would pay for that. This quickly made the boy realize that one of the detriments of this so-called symbiosis was that he now needed to fight for dominance of his own body; one slip, and the cat would dominate and dictate what he would do from that point on, until Harry regained control again.

Of course this possibility was making Harry do what he did best, whine, at least for a little while, stopping immediately to fight for control when the beast decided to try to control his whining self. The beast was easily transmitting the feeling that if he was refusing to be an Alpha, and was going to act like an Omega, it would gain complete control of their body and bury him deep in their collective mind, to never resurface again. Making Harry rather angry at that possibility, his dominance elicited a rather happy and satisfied mewl, from the now calm beast, at least for a second. Of course, mewl then became a warning growl when the boy began to recede to his whiny self.

"Bloody cat." Said the boy, walking to the main door. Harry had decided to go to the park, probably a good place to better think about what he had gotten himself into. On his way, he ignored how old Ms. Figg's cats seemed to run away in fright from him, calling her attention to him as Harry walked past her house.

Of course, the Thundercat soon became aware of being followed, though Harry was trying to communicate to it that the old lady didn't represent any danger to them at all. Maybe she was only trying to find one of her cats. The Thundercat soon took up Harry's suggestion, ignoring the old woman's presence entirely. (Or at least was pretending to ignore her.)

So that was how Harry passed the early hours of his morning, walking in the streets of the neighborhood. He was very aware of how many of the neighbors seemed to look at him with mistrustful gazes, not that it mattered to him, but the cat was restless, finding every angry glare to be a declaration against its power. Harry eventually got a massive migraine thanks to its rambling and growling, so he decided to rest in the park, ignoring the fact that Figg still was following him. It appeared, though, that this was just so she could rest her tired body; after all, she had been following the boy for almost two whole hours, and her poor feet were getting ready to fall off of her legs.

Harry, for his part, was thinking furiously. He needed a way to separate himself from this beast, a notion that was rudely interrupted by the cat, sending him the idea that if they got completely separated, they would die. After all, the damn beast was now part of his magical core, so if it left or was forced out, his core would leave too, and that would kill him, or make him into a squib.

Neither of these options was particularly attractive to Harry, so he decided to think of other options. Of course, that was when the Cat got restless, sending Harry signals that they were being surrounded by some predator, two of them to be exact. Harry quickly sat straight up, alarmed.

He had forgotten his wand in his room. He had been so preoccupied with the cat in his head that he completely forgot the most important tool of any wizard. The atmosphere suddenly became much colder than before. Harry's mind was screaming with memories from the past, very bad memories that he didn't want remembered at all. He was trembling with both, fear and cold, knowing that only a few creatures from the magical world could create this horrible feeling.

Knowing his luck, it would be a Dementor. It was common knowledge that it was _not _a good situation to encounter one without the means to defend or escape. Soon, Harry could see them rather than feel them, ignoring how the cat seemed almost playful at the idea of another creature much older and probably more powerful before him.

Dementors hate the Light, in any form, and one of their powers happened to be inducing the clouds to darken and cover the sun. Said clouds had something that was emboldening the cat though, as they were well charged with the elements to create lightning, one of the most powerful events in nature.

The Thundercat, a being that was born from a strike of lightning, had the power to command those electrical charged clouds. He could control them, but sadly couldn't create nor attract them like the Dementor seemed naturally to do. So while Harry (and by extension Figg) were hyperventilating, the cat took control of their body, conjuring two extremely powerful charges to fall upon the dark creatures, something that they would never expect.

The Dementors appeared to possess an incorporeal body, but they did not. They actually had a physical body, one very weak to any kind of light. They needed to immobilize their prey with fear so that it wouldn't struggle and damage the Dementor's rather fragile body. Of course, nobody had had the courage to get close enough to find how delicate they really were, so that fact was overlooked. And so it was believed that they were impossible to defeat without a Patronus. Of course, wizards had another means to defend themselves, but the Patronus Charm worked not only in controlling them, but to scare them away as well.

It is pretty damn hard, though, to conjure a Patronus while overwhelmed by a deluge of bad memories. It wasn't a perfect method, by any means, to defend your life in close distance. A stroke of lightning though, WAS another matter by itself. If it touched you, you would be killed, (Only surviving if you got lucky, of course, not without consequences.) no matter your physical characteristics, by a flash of heat as strong as the surface of the Sun itself.

Sadly, this failed to kill the Dementors. They were injured, of course, that much was evident to the naked eye and foul to the nose. The two magical creatures were suffering, and trying to disappear from the boy that had damaged them so much without even a wand. They ignored the orders of the foul toad-like woman. They needed to escape, and to rest.

To the displeasure of the woman, no other Dementors obeyed her orders to kill the boy, no matter how much she was mistreating them or using the Patronus charm on them. That was nothing compared to what the lightening Charm could do to them, the two Dementor's were still suffering from the damage and no others wanted to be in the same situation.

The woman later decided to give up, convinced that the boy was even more dangerous than she had believed, and needed to be treated more forcefully than before. But, of course, she didn't dare do anything more that could put the spotlight on her again like the two Dementors. The Azkaban guards were _very _interested in what caused those wounds, so she needed to remain low to avoid any suspicion of her involvement.

But that would be going too much into the future.

Returning to the park, Harry fell to his knees, completely tired out by that feat. He was quickly losing consciousness, and the cat seemed fatigued as well. So, the Boy-who-Lived was soon completely unconscious in a matter of minutes, followed swiftly by the Thundercat.

Figg for her part was recovering her breath, not believing how lucky they were to survive this encounter. She got close to the fallen boy, checking his pulse and finding to her relief that he was just unconscious. She would need help to take him to her house, but decided that she could only take him to a bench, and wait for him to wake up. After all, if anyone needed a rest, it would be The-Boy-Who-Lived-Again-Thanks-To-His-Luck.

…

Three hours later, the boy was packing his own things in his trunk, Arabella Figg did her job and reported this turn of events (miracle was the word she used) to Dumbledore, who, finding the situation too dangerous to his liking, decided to place Harry at the Burrow. Where he could be protected from the worst. Of course, at first the headmaster's plan was to take Harry to Grimmauld Place, but the fact that the prophecy was obviously working in favor of the boy was blinding him to the glaring dangers, like it had so many times before.

Completely confident in something that for him was not luck at all, but destiny, and preoccupied with the dangers that were still in the future, Dumbledore decided again, after a few a moments of doubt, to ignore the boy, sincerely afraid of what Voldemort could find thanks to the inexperience of said child, and of course, of what his friends could say to him if they heard something about their plans with the Order.

Harry for his part was happier than ever. He was not only alive, but was now being freed from his relative's house much earlier than anticipated. The cat was almost giddy when he told it of the forest that surrounded the Burrow, and was more than ready for the visit.

With all of his things packed, the teen announced his departure, seeing the relief in his relatives faces quite clearly at the news. This did not surprise him in the least, of course, after what happened, so taking his now shrunken trunk (thanks to Moody), Harry took the Portkey offered to him, ignoring the giggles and the shape shifting of the woman that was with him. He needed desperately to see his friends, to share what was happening to him.

Harry disappeared from Privet Drive and reappeared in the vicinity of the Burrow, smiling the second he arrived. He found, to his pleasant surprise, that he was not sick like he was used to feeling when traveling by Portkey. Of course that this was suddenly stopped when the cat growled in what Harry interpreted as an appreciative tone. Trying to find the reason for said reaction caused Harry to freeze when he finally found it.

Hermione was not only running to greet him (with Ron close, but that was unimportant to the cat), but her 'assets' were giving him a new vision of her body that he never noticed before. Hermione not only was a girl, but a _hot_ one at that. Harry gulped, ignoring the knowing look that the adults were suddenly giving him, especially the unknown woman.

The brown haired girl engulfed him in one of her hugs, completely happy to see him again. Of course, now that Harry was being more bold than ever, he made the hug much closer, causing the girl to let a little moan of happiness escape from her lips at his reaction, followed closely by a giggle.

Surprising Harry even more with the discovery that his best friend was not only a girl (a really attractive one), but one that was making the cat completely crazy, the beast seemed to know by instinct how much Harry trusted in her and was making discoveries that the boy would normally never find by itself. He slowly separated from her, finding her flushing face not only attractive but adorable.

It was a shame that Ron's voice got them out of their trance, "Hey mate. I hope you don't expect the same reception from me."

Harry smiled, still holding Hermione close, much to her surprise and delight, "Oh! And I was hoping so much that you would reciprocate my undying love."

The redhead laughed, "Bad luck, mate, but your hair is what made me look for other options. That and I don't want to compete with Creevey for your attention." Hermione stiffened a little at that comment, but ignored it when the boys started chuckling.

"Oh, honestly boys; Colin is a nice boy, you don't have to say that."

Both males looked at the other and decided to end the charade right there, just to prevent a Hermi-rant, "Of course Hermione." Harry said, ignoring the knowing smile that the girl was unsuccessfully trying to hide from them, "And if I remember well, he was more interested in how Ron would look in the Gryffindor quidditch uniform than he ever was Harry."

At the pale face of said redhead, Harry couldn't contain his laugh followed closely by Hermione who began directing him to the entrance to the Burrow, leaving a paralyzed Ron Weasley behind.

Recovering fast, Ron's face colored again. "Hermione... you're joking, right? Hermione! Oh bloody hell, HERMIONE TELL ME YOU'RE JOKING!"

The female Auror smiled. "An amusing group don't you think Moody?"

"I could have killed them twenty times in that amount of time." The grizzled man said with a grumble.

The woman groaned. Trust in her mentor to ruin a perfectly good moment.

"CONSTANT VIGILANCE!"

With two simple pops, the two of them disappeared.

**TBC**


	3. Chapter 3

**H**arry couldn't ignore it anymore.

The cat was a depraved individual, one that was telling him how much he wanted to shag Hermione and Ginny. Plus everything that seemed female. Thankfully, it never mentioned Molly, and Harry was extremely grateful for that. But this problem, one that was not only inside of him, (if not part of him) wasn't what really got him so upset.

It was that He, the supposedly voice of reason, was agreeing with every comment and desire that said demon expressed. Making him very aware of something that he was completely unaware before, things that the animal started to show him what he would have missed. Most likely to absorbed in a pity party of one to notice normally.

One of the first facts that where showed to him was that Ginny seemed to have a thing for him, and that, even though he was uncomfortable with the idea of 'mating' with his best friend's little sister, part of him, a little one, wanted to bend her over and do whatever he needed to do to satiate this feeling that was slowly consuming him. Even though he was not emotionally attracted to her, the feeling still persisted. He couldn't deny that she was becoming a rather good looking woman, and the cat seemed attracted to the idea of her having the capacity to have a lot of babies like her mother had, but he was sincerely conflicted, he had noticed Hermione too, and he had to admit, she was gorgeous. He never noticed before all those details that made her who she is.

Her hair, her lips (and the way she seemed to nibble her lower lip was a killer if you ask him) those chocolate eyes that seemed to sparkle when she was laughing, the way her hands liked to brush her hair when she was preoccupied, and those hips! Oh they were designed to raise the blood in a good way, more because she seemed to have a swing in her walk when he used to fall behind her, he was in fact very secure that even Ron had noticed it.

But then, his conscience, his real and original conscience had to show up and remind him who he was ogling, it was a disaster to tell you the truth, to have your conscience and a damned cat fighting inside your head over what you should feel over your actions.

His true conscience had a point, he was disrespecting Hermione and Ginny, they were NOT simple pieces of meat, they were people, young ladies, and more important, they were his friends and family. But the cat also had a point, he was taking the concept of family too far away, yes, they didn't need to be blood related to be a true family, but nor Hermione or Ginny seemed against the idea of him pursuing them romantically, in fact, they wanted him to notice them as more than a friend. (And he had to admit; maybe Hermione wanted Ronald to notice her too.) And who was he to deny them that?

A good friend, a REAL friend, would not end a friendship just because it has failed to be a good love mate, like every fight that was solved in the past, it could be equally solved by just sitting and talking about it, ending the friendship just because it failed romantically, not only shows how frail and false the relationship was to begin with, but how immature the two were to not admit that NOT everything could or will be how they expected or hoped it.

If everything fails, they could explain to each and other why they couldn't go on with a romantic relationship anymore, or at least admit that it was over only in regards to romance, not in the side that really matters in the end. Sadly, the teenagers seemed to over react to everything, always believing that it's not only the end of the world, but of their life, they will unleash their fury and confusion on the others and that is what could cause the rip between the two, later, when the hearth is more calm and the life like always seemed to go on, they will see how stupid and immature they where, sometimes embarrassing themselves with how naive they used to be in their youth.

Of course, the cat being a grown up by necessity, and absorbing part of the life experience of his host, had learned that Hermione was not only someone important to him, but the only one that was there with him when it really had mattered. Through the good and the bad she was there, even when he was being an idiot to her, she was his mate in all but in body and feelings, and that would or could be approached if he tried it.

In the wild, if you lost a possible mate, it hurts, but you need to get up and go on to find a new one or you will be a failure to your species and to yourself. Perseverance was what Harry needed concluded the cat.

So that was why the cat overtook the body (when Harry finally fell asleep,) and escaped the Burrow, going directly to the forest, just so his boy would learn to hunt and persevere, if you don't have perseverance, patience, and agility, you will fail in the hunt, and probably in life, was the opinion of the Thundercat.

So when Harry got his bearings again, he was not only covered in mud and foliage, he was absolutely mad to find he had not only hunted a bird, (a sleeping one) but devoured it, his body now with another mentality, soon was throwing up the contents of his upset stomach, ignoring the cry of protest of the cat, that was urging Harry to eat again the almost digested bird, making him dry heave again.

"Alright that's it; I'll tell them about you, I'm tired and pretty scared of what you will do next if I fall asleep again."

The cat seemed silent after all, and Harry at first was satisfied, at least for a little while, after a moment the silence of said cat was worrying him, it seemed like the cat was stressed or more exactly, excited about something, soon becoming restless against his mind, imploring, commanding and asking at the same time to go to the north, almost half a mile to the northeast to be more precise.

Harry soon protested, saying that his absence would soon be noticed, and that they would be in deep trouble if they didn't come back, but the cat didn't listen to one word, he was insistent that Harry needed to go in that direction, that something important was happening there, and that he needed to be closer to it.

After a moment of doubt, Harry was seriously considering going to where the cat desperately wanted to go, but his conscience was back, and she (it has the voice of Hermione) was admonishing and reciting how many rules he would and already was breaking, adding what would happen if he was caught, so he was about to concede complete defeat against his conscience, when a little glow in the distance called his attention.

Something really was happening there, and he was a curious boy, (too curious for his own good, apparently) so, following his curiosity against the yells and cries of his conscience, the boy parted in the direction of that spot in the forest.

It took him almost half an hour to be close to the light; at least sufficient enough to see that it was a group of Fairies, one hell of a big one, dancing and flying in the air like he has never see them before. Their dust was falling everywhere, making the plants, rocks, and even the air shine with golden, blue and pink flecks of light.

This was absolutely amazing, a sight that he never expected to see in his life, if he was honest with himself, this is why he decided to come to the magical world, (well that, and escape his relatives, maybe find his true self, a place to really belong, etc.) to see events that he could probably never could have dreamed before, but that was something that was stolen from him thanks to the crude reality, seeing that the magical world, being full of fantastic things, was full of rules, statements and prejudices that were not so different from those of the 'Real world.'

In both places what always mattered seemed to be how much money and power you got, and how could you use it to get even more. But this, this fantastic and wonderful event has nothing to do with money, just luck.

Then he decided to truly see what they were doing, finding something that put his heart on hold, in the center of this spectacle, was a girl, with long blond hair that seemed to move with the wind, sparking every time that she moved, a crown of flowers with Dandelions, clematis, and Lilies all adorning her head in a shock of yellow, purple, and red. Of course, even when his mind did acknowledge the names and colors of said flowers, (After all his Aunt Petunia did make him plant a few of them in the front and backyard) he was more focused in the pair of breasts that were bouncing in front of him.

Her skin seemed to be white like milk, so her stark dark pink nipples, where robbing him of his capacity to rationalize, he soon fell to his knees, failing to process the beauty ignorant of his presence, making him groan in disappointment when the girl stopped all her movements and maintained a petrified position in front of him.

Now he could detail that some spots of her skin were covered in a purple and reddish marks, probably from a few berries, of course a few were colored brown thanks to the mud and dirt that covered the ground of the forest.

She was slowly backing out of the area, probably about to run far away from him, possibly to never see her again, part of him remembered that Nymphs, (as he truly believed her to be one) were a dangerous creature to a human male, but he couldn't remember why exactly, so he hoped that his words would calm the beautiful forest girl.

"Please, do not be afraid of me, I was just curious of you, I have never seen a Nymph before in my life, and never expected to see one as beautiful as you. Forgive my intrusion, I'm probably interrupting something important, so I will depart promptly." Harry didn't know why, and was attributing this to the Cat, but he was not only ogling this marvel of nature, but, sincerely desiring her with the same intensity that he has for Hermione. (Ginny was a good girl, an attractive one, but he, sadly, barely knew her)

He soon picked himself up, seeing for a last time the Nymph so he could remember this moment for the rest of his life, a sigh escaped his lips just before he turned around to begin his travel back to the Burrow when her melodious voice stopped him at the spot.

"Do you truly believe that I am beautiful?" Her voice was quavering, like she was afraid not only of him, but of what he could do or say, so he couldn't contain himself and said what he truly believed.

"You are one of the most beautiful girls I have ever seen in my whole life, I feel, honored to have been blessed with this chance to glance upon your figure being as free as ever." Harry opened his eyes, sincerely confused not only by the situation, but with himself, he wasn't like this, where was this boldness when he needed to say those things to Cho? Then he remembered the cat, that seemed to be pretty entertained with how he was treating the situation, he closed his eyes, asking if the cat was manipulating his words, feeling a denying for answer, it seemed that that was ALL him, he just lacked the guts to say them out loud before, fearing that he was being ridiculous.

So the cat seemed to at least eliminate some of his more primal fears, changing him and how he reacted to take a situation, Harry certainly liked that, after all, his brain seemed to always get the better answers AFTER a confrontation, like the best lines, insults and the like. So being capable of really using what he truly wanted to say was not only new to him, but liberating, being not afraid at all of what they would think of him.

"Do you want to dance with me?" Of course, all this new bravado seemed to fail him at those words, his body was physically trembling, both in apprehension and euphoric bliss, being the first part of his true self, and the latter, being obviously the cat. "A-are you sure? I am well, a simple boy, and you are one of the most gorgeous girl I have seen."

She giggled; it was a delicious sound, making him smile just for hearing it, "I don't mind, and a dance is always more fun if you have a partner, don't misunderstand me, I love the fairies, but they tend to forget about me, in fact, they have not stopped at all in all the time we have expended together."

Harry was surprised to see that she was not only correct, but that they seemed more vigorous than before, his cheeks colored when he noticed more than a few were even mating like there was no tomorrow for them. His bravado now, completely gone, (even when the cat was protesting loudly for this) put him more nervous than before. "Do I have to…you know, with you?" He was pointing to the mating fairies, making the Nymph gasp with surprise at his insinuation.

He was even more nervous thanks to that sound, "Not that you have to, I was only asking, it's that I have never done that, and… and don't know if I would be of help, or a good partner."

She asked, in a voice that almost seemed a whisper, "You would seriously consider me worthy enough to be desirable?"

This time, he was the one freeing a gasp of incredulity, "Worth? You are not only worth the idea, you are… you are, priceless. I can't forgot about you even if I wanted to, you are unique, If one is not worthy here, it's me, look at me. My hair is a disaster, I am too small for my age, I am scrawny, I am nothing compared to you."

He shut himself up when he listened to the first hiccup, she seemed to be crying for some reason he could not understand, at least until she told him something confusing, "You are the most silly and sweet boy I have ever meet in my life, Harry Potter. And even if you don't believe me, you are really special."

This seemed to put him on edge, so she added, "Everyone knows who you are in the magical world, and I don't think of you as special because of the Boy-who-lived, but more because you have in a few minutes, showed me more kindness that even those of my… kind, will ever show. Sadly, the dance is over for the night, I would like to give the Fairies a little privacy in this delicate and beautiful moment of their mating season, if you are curious, you can come tomorrow, and I will be here dancing with them in their ritual of mating. You can come if you like, this will last two weeks, so we could know each enough to call us, friends."

Harry was having a few doubts, he was nervous with what this could be, but soldiering himself, he answered, "I will see you tomorrow, but first, two questions please? Do I have to come naked too?"

She opened her silvery blue eyes blushing heavily thanks to his question, after a few uncomfortable seconds, she answered, "Not necessarily, you could dance with your clothes, but they will get covered with fairy dust and will shine for two days, being almost impossible to wash away once its attached. I would recommend using or bringing two pair of clothes, one to dance, and one to change back."

Harry smiled, a little more at easy with this revelation, (he could be bolder now, but he was completely nervous like any other bloke would be) "Thanks for answering, and, the last question is, if I can know your name?"

She smiled and answered without a doubt, "My name is Luna."

**TBC**


	4. Chapter 4

**H**arry was nervous, first because he was again in the middle of a forest, waiting for the Nymph called Luna, second, because the Weasleys, especially Molly; were starting to suspect that something was off after catching him nodding off at breakfast, it seemed that, thanks to the twins, she was accustomed that when one of their children was sleeping or sleepy in the day after what should have been a good night of rest, that this could only means that they didn't get any sleep at all, and were up to something.

So she was watching him the whole time, and the cat didn't like it, or him. It was not that he don't appreciate what she was doing, he was honored really, but he was not a little child that needed supervision 24/7. He needed his own space, and frankly, she was creeping him out.

He was sure he liked the woman, hell, she was the closest thing he had to a mother, and he was grateful, but she was taking this too far for his liking, he was sure that he liked her enough but, she was not his mother, and would probably never be, so he wanted his privacy back, but the woman seemed to not understand his signs, or was ignoring them like a professional.

He didn't want to offend the Weasleys, nor gain their disdain by being an ungrateful child, but frankly speaking, HE WANTED HIS OWN SPACE DAMN IT.

Another problem was that his clothes got a lot of Fairy Powder on it, and the damn things sparkled with even the most insignificant of lights. He was glowing BLUE in the middle of the forest, and then White when he got out of there, crossing the backyard of the Burrow.

Ignoring that for some reason, he didn't activate any of the several alarms that resided in the area. In fact, it seemed like the wards were ignoring him or were nonexistent. Sure, in times of war it could be different, but because nothing happened that caused alarm on their side, (The Dementors being considered just an odd occurrence, something that he, sadly, seemed to attract just for being himself) Nothing was raised to the occasion and his nightly escapades didn't get noticed at all, at least for now, if he was careful to not create too much noise when he got inside of the house. (Something that he sadly was again, ignoring. [Being raised to walk quietly] Or at least the fact that he was more silent with his steps, more precise and sneaky than he ever was in the past before the _event _happened)

He inhaled a lungful of the freezing nocturnal air just to calm himself a little. He still was confused by what happened in the backyard earlier that day. He was aware of Hermione more than he ever had been before, and Ginny didn't seemed like a bad thing to look at these days.

"_Harry, Harry? HARRY! Oh! Honestly, are you paying attention to anything__ I have told you in the last five minutes, Harry?" Her voice was almost tantalizing him to touch her, it was like a melody of seduction to his ears, and it was like if her tone of voice was a signal to him of a fiery and beautiful beast that was waiting to__ be tamed._

_Sadly, a punch in his shoulder woke him up of his dream world, he shook his head trying to get the cobwebs out, trying to grasp the reality he was so eluding. "Ouch, Hermione, why did you do that?" He rubbed the area, trying to make the sting di__sappear with a massage, and failing completely._

"_Honestly, I don't know why I seem to care for such a dunderhead like you," She looked at the sky, like asking for a little, or maybe a lot of patience to deal with him. He could barely see a little of red in__ her face, it could be a blush, he wanted it to be a blush, but it could be her skin reacting to the glaring sun that radiated glory in this perfect sunny __day of summer in the lands of Scotland. (Or wherever the Burrow was located, geography wasn't one of __his strong points)_

"_I am sorry Hermione; I was just... contemplating the possibilities," This seemed to catch her attention. Not like a rare book did, but close enough._

"_What possibilities are you thinking of?" She seemed to be studying him, looking him di__rectly to his eyes, and to his pleasure, to his lips for a few seconds, her left hand was over the cover of her book, doodling a little circle in the brown leather cover._

"_About-"_

"_Harry! Don't you want to play a little match of Quidditch?" Harry let a lit__tle groan of disappointment escape from his lips, closing his eyes for a second, missing the saddened look on the brown haired girl cross her features, before she recovered and switched to a normal and more neutral one._

_Harry opened his eyes, to look in th__e direction of his very inopportune friend, seeing him carrying two brooms in his hands, one being his precious Firebolt, and the other that was not his precious broom, being behind the said Redhead, was the rest of the younger Weasleys, Ginny almost hidin__g behind the twins, who were looking at him with something close to amusement in their eyes. Of course, the little redheaded girl was looking at the distance, it seemed like she wanted to avoid his and Hermione's eyes, he wasn't sure why._

"_I even got one f__or Hermione." Commented Ron, trying to give the object to the now glaring girl. "Ronald Weasley, you know perfectly well that I don't like to play Quidditch, I prefer to spend my time in a more productive activity."_

"_Oh, come on. And what would that be, re__ading? What is wrong with a little fun in your life? We can have a lot of fun playing between us; you can't hide behind a book all the time." The twins and Ginny were slowly backing off from the two, and Harry was almost about to do the same, just to preve__nt to be in the middle of the spat, when a feeling that he was very aware only appeared with Cho did he step in._

"_Back off Ron, if she doesn't want to play, then let her be, you don't have to pester her for that, we all have different likes, and sadly, her__s doesn't include the most awesome game ever created." Hermione was paralyzed for a second, or a few more, she seemed to be completely surprised that he intervened. Ron seemed more flabbergasted simply because he has never stopped one of their arguments be__fore._

_The redhead was about to say something, when Harry being bold again, decided to interrupt another tradition between the trio, the beginning of a Ron Rant. "And, to tell you the truth, flying is not one of Hermione forte's, she's an amazing and pretty__ much awesome witch on land, but in the air… I'm sorry to say this Hermione, but you're rubbish; you could probably get killed by the first Quaffle that appeared behind you."_

_Ron stopped again, this time, to process what he has said, then to stop the laugh__ that wanted to come out of his throat. Hermione sadly had her own short fuse when her pride was hurt._

"_Rubbish? RUBBISH! I will show you Rubbish. Ronald, give me that broom." Spat his brown haired friend, almost burning with determination to demonstrate t__he contrary to His statement. "I don't know Hermione, Harry has a point." Was what Ron said after being approached again by the now almost infuriated witch, sadly for his health, she wasn't accepting any of it._

"_If you don't give me that Broom in this inst__ant Ronald Weasley; you will suffer the dire consequences."_

"_Take it, just please don't hurt me." The suddenly intelligent boy simpered, the twins now, truly convinced that the danger has passed, took a pair of steps closer to the trio._

_"Blimey, Ronniekins__, we almost thought,"_

"_That we were about to lose you there."_

"_Not that we don't mind,"_

"_Better you than us, to be frank."_

_Surprisingly, it was Ginny who stopped their charade, "Okay, stop it, I'm getting tired of being here on the ground and not in the __air. The teams are now even, this will be a 3 vs. 3 Match, the first to reach one hundred of points will win. I guess it will be this two clowns and me, between you three." Her eyes were almost sparkling with a fire that Harry has never seen before, it see__med that the little girl had a raving passion over those layers of awkwardness that she always seemed to be stricken with around him._

_To his surprise, this fire seemed more focused against Hermione than him, of course, Harry and everyone present got the su__rprise of their life when the brunette girl finally spoke. "Not this time, I believe that it could be better if Harry, Ginny and Ronald make one team and the Twins and me in the other."_

_Harry and in a sense, the cat, were afraid of the confidence that she __seemed to show, she was not a prime flier. She was pretty average in the class, as she had never showed much interest in the art of flying. So he had assumed that she probably didn't like the heights very much. (It was also what everyone assumed) But so fa__r she seemed almost desperate to show that she was not inadequate or inept in any form._

_The dark haired wizard frowned, not understanding the girls need to show everybody that she was valuable, when for him, and he supposed everyone present, she was alread__y irreplaceable._

_Ginny didn't lose a hint of her new found passion as she accepted the deal, it seemed that she wanted to prove herself too, the cat for some reason, was not only silent, but concentrating, it seemed that something was happening for him tha__t needed his complete attention on those two girls, like if the result of this match could decide some kind of fate._

"_It's a deal then." Were the final words of Hermione, before she went in the direction of the twins, talking to them in low tones. "This wi__ll be easy," commented Ginny, with an outstanding smile in her pretty face._

"_Ye-yeah," was the answer of Ron, who was still looking at their previously mousy bookworm friend with a little terror in his eyes, the two of them looked at the direction of the r__ival trio one more time, trying to repress the shivers that were about to dominate their bodies._

…

Harry snorted, in the end Hermione had played like they expected her to, nothing spectacular, she made a series of mistakes that in the end caused the game to end in his teams favour, but it was a surprisingly close call. She, like always, planned ahead of time, giving the twins a series of plays and directives that even they didn't know, it seemed that all the times she had been reading about the game had paid off. In fact, if he remembered correctly she had gifted him once with a Book about Quidditch that Snape confiscated and never returned. ('Greasy git', he thought) so it was probably that she got a few plays from her books to make up for her lack of experience on a broom. (She was sadly only decent)

But more importantly, it seemed that the cat seemed to have found the answer he was looking for in that game. Ginny was _almost_ the epitome of the alpha female, she was fiery, strong, and seemed to be pretty passionate in anything she really set her mind to.

But it seemed like the cat found some glaring faults that were not attractive to him, she was almost a miniature version of her mother at times. while it was a good idea to have a girl that could have a lot of children with him, the cat would probably fry her if she tried to control him like her mother tended to do to her father. This could change with time, but sadly that was not something that the cat would settle for. Due to both his own impatience, and his hosts rather trouble prone life, the amount of time she needed was not something either of them had.

He seemed to be in constant danger, and the redhead had not even once approached the boy to even help or express support to him in the last four years, she has her own problems to solve, he was aware but, she seemed too controlled by her mother to be truly free, at least at this moment were she was still a minor.

This could change in the future, but the cat wanted someone less inhibited, or controlled by overbearing mothers, and sadly the redhead was just that, a really guarded child. Any change in her would be noticed immediately and bring unwanted attention to him and his host. (It was pretty sure that they would try to separate them, ending in a tragedy.)

Hermione for another part seemed to be trying to impress him, and everyone else. She lacked the confidence Ginny had, but she was a strong girl no less, what she lacked in power, she solved it with cleverness, and that, was pretty attractive to the cat, and she seemed like a natural recessive and the cat was nothing if not a dominant, so that was really attractive to him. Sadly, his host seemed indecisive with what side he was on, in the recessive or the dominants, He was an Alpha at heart, but his relatives seemed to have molded him to be an Omega, and to never think otherwise. A problem he was trying hard to solve.

The girl was loyal, that was something that Harry has never doubted, well, except that time with his beloved broom, but what bloke would not react violently if you take his awesome toy away? NO! it was a fucking Firebolt and it was HIS, HIS AND NO ONE ELSES.

The boy shook his head, trying to forget that annoying voice in his head screaming 'IT'S MINE, YOU WILL NOT TAKE IT AWAY DUDLEY!' _Great, no__w I am truly hearing voices in my head, fantastic ._He looked in the direction of the sky, noticing that a few fairies where already there, seemingly flying in random patterns just to entertain themselves.

_Luna should be there in a few moments, _He was watching a little Fairy fly around one tree, over and over, making a spiral around it with her or his powder. Two minutes of watching that and he lost interest and looked at the sky, wondering where the hell the moon was.

_Maybe it's waiting behind those nasty l__ooking clouds, trying to do a dramatic but majestic appearance. _He chuckled, trying to focus his mind on something different, just to prevent more weird comments like that. He sighed, remembering the talk with the twins after the game.

**...**

"_Well, well, __well, look at what we have there, oh Brother o' mine." That was Fred... or George. Harry wasn't completely sure._

"_Yes my not so beautiful brother, I can see that we have discovered the rare specimen of a Casanova." The Dark Haired teen decided to put the n__ame George on this one, he always seemed to be the egocentric of the duo. (Or maybe that was what they wanted him to think?) George it was._

"_But I'm not sure, my more beautiful but not very bright brother, he seems pretty scrawny to be the kind of Casanova__ that we are looking for." Harry was now having doubts about naming the other one George._

"_Why? Disappointed that he didn't put his attention on the likes of you?"_

_Harry decided it was a good moment to interrupt their charade, "Okay, guys, stop it, you are__ losing the focus of the conversation there."_

_The fiends, as that was the only way he could describe them right now, as they didn't look very much like his friend at that moment, smiled._

"_That's what you think Harry, that's what you think, but you are righ__t, we are discussing something that has no importance right now, everybody knows the truth about who is what, specially the ladies." Fred answered with a fake pompous persona. George smiled, not too much, but enough to say that he was taking the comment ve__ry well._

"_Okay, so, why are you here, alone with me, in the backyard. Maybe the two of you are considering confessing your undying love for me? Because Ron seemed reluctant to admit it, and I admit to have a weak spot in my heart for redheads."_

_The two of __them seemed to freeze at his joke; he might be more relaxed than he ever was in the past, but he never joked like that, nor pretended to be like that before, at least not with them._

_Then the two of them smiled, "Wow, our poor little Harry seemed to have gr__own a pair over the summer, brother of mine."_

"_That's seems to be true, but joking apart, it is noted that he hasn't denied, but affirmed his attraction to redheads, specially the one he was ogling all the time in these last two days." Harry heart skipped __a beat, he was so sure that his ogling has been so smooth. He needed more practice to perfect it as soon as possible._

"_OH, the curse of beauty, but joking aside we are supposed to threaten him to not look at our sister like that, not encourage him to do so__." Harry paled, knowing well how protective the Weasley brothers were about the girl of the family._

"_Of course we have to, what would the public say if the Prophet published, 'Boy-who-lived was violently assaulted by raving girl.' It would outdo us; think __of the shame we will acquire being overshadowed by our little sister in the 'I expected more of you,' look that our dear mother has created just for us." The Black headed boy was now officially confounded._

"_I don't think so, Brother of mine, Mother would p__robably congratulate little Gin-gin for acquiring such a promising specimen." That was the breaking point for the raven haired boy._

"_Please, stop. I confess. Yes, I was ogling your Sister. Yes, I find her attractive, but I swear that that's it, nothing mor__e, I am just trying to adjust to some… changes that have occurred to me this summer." He was now trembling, trying to confess them his by now, more dangerous secret._

"_Oh Fred, they grown up so fast this days," That was George, or maybe Fred trying to confu__se him even more, but for now it will be George._

"_You are certainly right, but I thought that I was Fred, Fred." Yeah, they where messing with him just for their enjoyment. He deflated himself, ignoring that even the cat was confused by the charade, not kn__owing if to attack or ignore them. "Okay guys, I surrender, I will not ogle your sister anymore."_

_The two of them smiled brightly, "That's correct, you will not ogle our sister anymore, at least not in front of us."_

"_Or in front of mother, she's singing a __nuptial march, you know."_

_Harry's eyes widened at that mention, "Are you giving me permission to ogle your sister? And isn't that a little preposterous of your mother, Ginny is attractive, and I would love to be part of your family, but, I have only ogled __her, not declared."_

_The grin disappeared off them, and the two looked at him with something close to seriousness. "It's not that we don't love our mother dearly, but, well, she has this little vision of a big family, and you are the only bloke around Ginny__'s age that she knows about, we mean, that she truly thinks she knows about. So it's natural that she has fantasies of you wooing her most loved child."_

"_Not that she doesn't love us, as she does, we can guarantee it. But Gin-gin is the first Weasley girl __in seven generations so she has a soft spot for her. But we agree that she is taking this too far, we do not mind if that happens in three or four years, if that is what you truly want, but right now, Gin-gin has to grow up a little to comprehend what she __really wants. Not what our mother would like and expect from her."_

_Harry was sincerely confused, it was so like them…_

"_Please, again, don't misunderstand us; we really and truly love our mother, you do not need to think too much over our words, but it seem__s that every mother out there does this, dreams of the possibilities of all her children, and sometimes tend to play matchmaker with what they believe could be the best choice for them." That was George._

"_Are you saying that I'm not a good choice for your __sister?"_

_The twins looked at each another for a second, and answered at the same time, "Right now? No, we do not think so."_

_Harry deflated completely hearing that._

_Fred was very fast to break him out of his whine mode, even more than the cat, who was __trying to control himself, "You are a great guy Harry, but right now, you are an adolescent."_

_Harry rolled his eyes, "Gee, thanks for the obvious."_

_George smiled, "Harry, right now, you are more interested in sleeping with our sister, than having a serious__ relationship with her. We know, because we are the same, we like our girls, but seriously, we don't really know if it's love, or if this will endure the __years. And it's more obvious in yourself because you don't really know how to conceal the desire you h__ave discovered for the female form."_

'_OH Bollocks, they wouldn't dare!' Thought, Harry._

"_Not when you are fantasizing about your best female friend too." Fred added._

'_Thank God for little mercies, they are not going to give to me The Talk.' The boy sighed __in relief. At least till the moment their comment registered in his mind. 'Wait, what?'_

"_Wait, what?" His mouth seemed to be synchronized with his mind at that moment._

"_OH don't pretend that you haven't ogled and flirted with Hermione, something that she s__eemed to like very much, and by the reactions of our family, they have noticed it too, weirdly enough, Ron seems to be taking it much better than we would have expected of him." George told him._

_Fred wasn't too far behind, "Or maybe he hasn't noticed it, o__ur not so little anymore Harry has been subtle, only doing the flirty move's when our brother is not close to hear, but nothing escape the vision of our dear mother and sister, at least not in the Burrow."_

"_Not that we agree, but, the two of them have know__ the girl for the same amount of time, in fact, something could have changed last year, with our dear brother being a not very happy with the…" The two brothers guarded silence completely understanding that even when they were not angry at Harry that year,__ they didn't offer any kind of help either…_

"Is there something interesting in the sky that I should be aware of?" The sweet voice of Luna scared the Mickey out of him, thankfully not in a literally sense. He was so focused in his memories that he never noticed that the forest was shining with the flying, dancing and now mating fairies.

His heart halted completely at seeing how close she was to him, and how much he could detail her body. He instantly noticed that her breasts were completely naked, except the nipples, which were now covered by a very nice (But odoriferous) leaf. He couldn't control the disappointed groan that escaped his throat. She giggled at his reaction, making her assets dance even more for him.

He soon recovered himself, "Oh, I'm so sorry I shouldn't have looked at you like that."

She smiled, and he couldn't pretend that he didn't notice how much her face seemed to brighten even more when she was doing that. "I do not mind, it's… refreshing to be looked at with desire and not discontent." She seemed to have a look that seemed almost glassy and focused in a far away memory. Recognizing the signals of an unpleasant reminiscence, he added. "I hope that you don't mind, but I want to know you much better tonight."

Luna seemed to blink a couple of times, slowly and deliberately breathing for a few seconds, she crossed her legs a little, making Harry very aware of what or how she could have interpreted his words. "Oh sorry, sorry, I was referring to know us better, like talking about our lives, not in _that _way_._" He cursed in his mind for his poor word choice. Seeing her deflate and give two steps back, like she has been physically struck.

He rapidly added, "Not that I don't find you attractive, I think you are beautiful, and I would like to do it with you, but- NO, that's not what I meant to say- I..." She giggled, and then laughed at him; he looked at her for a few seconds, slightly hurt by her reaction, "I'm sorry."

She stopped, to look at him with a firm stare, "Do not be, it seems that you are as nervous as me, so let's pretend that that didn't happen at all." She walked a little and put herself next him, taking his hand in hers and directing him to the insides of a hollow tree, she sat first, being careful to put her hands in very well placed positions to not show too much to the already randy teenager, but enough to let him look and still desire her.

What followed was one of the most relaxing and magical nights that the boy has ever experimented, it seemed that they could talk about everything and anything, she seemed to be a really intelligent girl, she waited and listened to him without any comment or interrupt, only to add her opinion of what he has told her when he finished. He did the same, finding fascinating her vision of the world, so open, so full of possibilities, of her passions and mistakes.

In the end, the two of then opened enough to say things that they have never told anyone, his life in the burrow, and her life alongside her kind. They seemed to have been so similar but at the same time, so different.

Only the sound of bells took them out of their reverie, finding to his surprise (she was accustomed to see them doing it.) That ALL the fairies were mating, he was enthralled with the variety of positions, sounds and moves that they could do, not noticing how much she was staring at him, slowly closing the distance between the two.

"Harry?" He looked in her direction, finding her closing the distance to him, slowly, almost shyly, the old Harry would have freaked out, but this one had a magical beast inside of him, who was telling him to kiss her, obtruding the usual conscience that his relatives helped to create. He closed the distance, and experienced his first kiss in a way that seemed to move the land under him.

She moaned, a sound that he found extremely enticing, he put his hands on her back, hugging her closer to him she responded by surrounding his neck with her arms, staying like this for a long time only enjoying the taste of the other lips on their own.

Then, like before, the sound of a bell woke them up from the spell, the two of them separating a little, trying hard to not show how much they were aroused thanks to the other.

She looked at the sky, gasping and startling the boy by doing so, "What, what is it?"

She looked at him, almost contemplating her options, deciding what was best for them, "It's late, too late. It's almost three in the morning, you have to go, or you will be discovered, I have to go too my family or what remains of it, will be awake in an hour. I have to be there." She seemed as reluctant to leave has him, but he had to admit that she was right.

"Will I see you tomorrow?" He hoped that his tone was as neutral as he believed it is; if she noticed the longing in his voice, she did not reveal it. "Of course, I will be here tomorrow silly."

He smiled, "Then it's a date."

Hearing those words, she lunged at him, kissing her with all her desire, "I hope so, my beautiful beast."

He took the comment brightly, believing that being she a magical being. She could find soon that he too was one of them. So he affirmed. "It will be and that's a promise."

Then the two of them parted, each in a different direction, but both of them smiling as brightly.

**TBC**


	5. Chapter 5

**H**arry had never seen the sky be so blue, the clouds look softer, or the leaves and grass so green.

In fact, he had never noticed before but the Burrow was not only peaceful, it was a great place to live. The air was clean and the view was spectacular, it seemed to be an idyllic place to live and raise the cubs… err children.

Then why did it feel so constricting? He frowned, he had the answer already, but he didn't want to admit it. But sadly he now understood almost perfectly why the oldest bunch of Weasley children had gone so far as to live in constant danger with dragons, goblins, and politicians, (the last being the worst kind of beast if you asked him.) than live again under the domain of Molly Weasley.

She was a great woman, and mother, but she was like a cross between an octopus and a boa constrictor.

She always wanted to have a hand in almost every activity that included them, (Thanks to Merlin, Morgana and Maeve, she has stopped to try to help her children in the bathroom.) She even filtered what kind of activity they could have or consider, constricting their options almost completely. It seems it didn't matter their age, for her, they where toddlers that needed her hand to guide them.

So they can't nor couldn't find any mean or form what was occurring in the Order gathering in who knows where, leaving them in the care of Molly almost every night. (She didn't find anyone more fit to do the job than her.) He suspected that such reunions were about him and the upcoming war with Voldemort.

The cat growled at the mere mention of that name, both in primal fear and in challenge, awkwardly. Harry understood both reasons. The fear was a natural reaction of the body, a way to prevent great damage, it was normally unwise to ignore this feeling, and fear of an opponent that could easily kill you was what could save your life in a dire situation.

The tricky part was to acknowledge enough fear to respect and be more careful of your opponent, but not let said emotion overwhelm and control you.

Harry simply has discovered that to always count on his luck was not only stupid, it was sadly predictable, thanks to that damn cat he had learned that if you were a predictable predator, then the prey will escape, or worst, defend itself.

Then it comes the challenge part, well, he was now an Apex predator so the mere idea that something was more powerful than him was a dare for his Alpha position, he NEEDED to be powerful and lethal to protect the females and the cubs.

He smiled, sensing, and curiously, feeling, that Hermione was close to him. She waited a few seconds behind him, then she sat her pretty body on his right side, her knees close to her chest, and her arms were surrounding said legs. "Hello Hermione," He inhaled, smiling when he could detect the fragrance of peach and sweat, female sweat that frankly, was exciting and enticing for him. (She had another fragrance, one that was making him feel wild, dangerous, and dominant. But he didn't know what exactly it was.)

"Hello Harry… a Knut for your thoughts?" She was looking at the distance, slowly breathing the fresh breeze. He sighed, he could feel and see that she was hurt and upset. "What did Ron do this time?" He asked, she gasped, looking surprised for a while, before smiling, "Wrong redhead." Harry eyebrow's went up a little, this was something unusual. "The Twins then?"

"No Harry, wrong gender."

"Oh, Molly then." She gasped again in surprise, "How did you know I wasn't talking about Ginny?"

"I didn't, I just assumed you were here for the same reasons I am."

She frowned, even with his eyelids closed he could 'see' her reactions, so he added fast, "Don't get me wrong, I like Mrs. Weasley, but even I get tired of the constant coddling."

Hermione sighed, "I admire her. She has raised a loving family, has conquered the adversities and has been nothing but a fine example of a loving and devoted mother."

"Yeah, but…" Added Harry, Hermione sighed one more time, "But she treats us like little children, and not only that she has this pre-conceived notions of what we can or cannot do regarding our gender, I concur with her, that knowing how to cook, clean, and how to maintain a house is primordial, but why only the girls? You boys could use the magic too if you choose to live by yourselves as bachelors, and even if we get married someday, I expect my husband to share the work at home too."

Harry nodded; his life could have been so much easier at Privet Drive if that concept was the rule at that… house. No, place. He looked at her expecting for more, "It's… it's like she's grooming us to be wives and only that, no offense to the housewives but, I WANT MORE, much more than be just a housewife."

She finally let her body fall in the grass with a soft 'Thump', breathing slowly, the both of them obviously enjoying the silence and the breeze.

"It's not that I don't want to be a mother, when the time's come, I will try to be the best mother I can be, but first, I would like to live my life, to not have any regrets haunting my dreams for the rest of my existence, with '_what if, or I should have...'_"

Harry smiled, that… that sounded, "That's great, I… I always wanted to travel, A LOT, far, very far away from the Dursleys, to know what's outside Privet Drive, then Little Whinging, to see the ocean; I sincerely would love to see a beach."

"That sounds great, mate." Said Ron who Harry had sensed was coming closer to them when Hermione was in the end of her diatribe, he knew that Ginny was spying of them too; she smelled a lot like flowers and pepper. He had not revealed her because it was not the first time he has perceived her doing it, her smell was revealing that she was attracted but reticent, doubting, and he didn't want to force her in any form. So he let her be, now almost accustomed to her constant presence.

Hermione gasped, and then smiled at the redhead, Harry patted the grass at his left, "Come Ronald, enjoy the breeze with us."

Ron himself smiled, it was contagious it seemed, sitting on the grass with the grace of an elephant, the dark haired boy sighed contently, Hermione at his right side, and his best mate and his left, "So, were you talking about traveling?" Asked the redheaded boy, Harry answered. "Yes, we were, in the future I would like to travel around the world, Hermione _will _be at my side, and I was hoping that you will be there too."

Ron gasped, and then smiled almost breaking his face in two. "And lose the glorious chance to eat food from everywhere and anywhere. Of course I will be there; I wouldn't miss that for anything."

Harry snorted out loud covering without knowing the snort from a mortified brown haired witch, slowly the three of them lost it completely and laughed, forgetting about the rest of the world and it's problems.

**...**

"Tempus," Whispered Harry grimacing at the hour, he was fifteen minutes late to his date with Luna.

But the Burrow was so full of life, this night in particular, and everyone seemed to stay awake past midnight so he had pretended to be tired and retired to his room pretending to sleep and waiting for everybody to fall to the sandman's call, sadly he to had overestimated how exhausted he was from the day and got acquainted with his inner eyelids.

Thankfully, the cat woke him up and he was not as delayed as he thought he was, so he got up from the bed and carefully walked to the door, then slowly and silently to the stairs, (avoiding the spots that would make any kind of noise) He opened the backdoor after checking the kitchen was deserted of any red or brown head opening and closing it almost delicately, he broke into a jog as he was crossing the backyard so he didn't notice said door opening and then closing all by itself nor the flattening of the grass blades behind him.

Harry was almost desperate to see Luna. He didn't want her to believe that he had forgotten about her, so he was pushing his body to faster and faster. So absorbed in what he was doing he didn't notice himself slowly changing, adapting, transforming to a more powerful but sly silhouette, making him run more efficient than ever.

His lungs consumed more oxygen, his sweat was more substantial almost reaching the consistency of Kitchen oil, adhering to his skin and cooling faster his now overheating body.

Harry jumped around a tree, touching the bark and slashing it a little with his now extremely sharp claws; he smiled, again ignoring the odd occurrence (or the gasping of someone not so far away from him.) he was too enthralled with the fragrance of Luna, unknowingly showing his razor sharp teeth or that he was seeing better than ever with so little lunar light.

The boy inhaled air desperately, trying to control himself, focusing completely on the fragrance of Luna to calm his agitated body, ignoring how his body regressed to a normal estate, making him dizzy at the process.

It took him almost five minutes to breathe with a degree of normalcy, and two more to calm his heart rate. He soon discovered that his clothes were covered with sweat, and gaining more and more power thanks to it. "Are you okay Harry?" The voice of Luna took a pair of years away from him, she seemed to have heard something in the distance and was looking at it, frowning a little then smiling confusing him a little, but he was supposing that it was a Nymph eccentricity so he ignored it, because the cat had not felt anyone in that direction.

"Did you bring any extra attire to change?" Harry gasped, having sincerely forgotten about bringing any extra clothes with him. He shook his head in denial, gulping at the smile she was giving him at his response.

"I trust you completely. Do you trust in me too, Harry?" She was looking him at his eyes without blinking, smiling all the time. He nodded knowing what exactly she was asking, after all they has seen and touched the other a lot in the week that they had known each and other.

Slowly he took his shirt off, then his belt, pants and finally after a bit of hesitation, his undergarments. She smiled at him, slowly approaching him then kissing him on the lips, "Let's go and dance Harry." He nodded hopping to the other side of the three following with Luna the beat of bells that the Faeries were using.

Harry was definitely nervous (and for what he could see, she too) he was feeling surprisingly alone, the cat seemed exhausted for some reason, so it was only him and the beautiful creature of the forest.

He gasped in surprise when his hand was taken by her, "Don't be afraid, you have nothing to be ashamed for, you are gorgeous. And I love the shape of your genitalia."

He stiffened; no one had ever been so... direct and frank with him. He could even feel how much she was attracted to him, "I... um, like your breasts." He blanched believing the worst until he heard a giggle. "Thank you, I find the fact that you like them arousing." Harry smiled now more relaxed, "Then will you honor me to be my partner in this dance?"

She seemed to smile even more, "Of course I do, come on, let's dance."

Harry was pretty sure after that night that he liked the girl, he wasn't sure if it was love, he'd never received a good example of WHAT love really was between a couple, he wasn't sure but he wanted to find it.

The next morning he was again in the Burrow launching Gnomes out of the backyard with Ron alongside him, he has noticed that his red headed mate seemed tense, like he was upset for an unknown reason. "What's eating you mate?" He smiled involuntary, knowing that he would not have dared to make that question without the cat inside of him. Ron for his part only jumped at his question, "Bloody Hell Harry! You scared the Mickey out of me."

"Sorry, I was just curious," He noticed that this calmed the redhead who sighed after a few seconds, "Harry, you are my mate right?"

"The best." He answered instantly; a little weary of what exactly Ron wanted with that kind of conversation opener. Oh god, he wasn't coming out to him was he? He thought it was very clear that the unrequited love thing was a joke! "Harry, be honest with me and tell me, what I am good for?" Asked the redhead surprising him, the sense of relief his fears were proven false was clear on his face, thankfully said redhead was too focused in the horizon to notice Harry's reaction to his inquiry.

"Why are you asking me this Ron?"

"Cause you are my best mate."

"No, no that, I meant what motivated you to think about this."

"Hermione."

"Oh." Harry tried to ignore the growl of possessiveness that tried to escape his throat at the mention of the brown haired girl, remembering that she seemed a little distant this morning. So he answered, wearier of what exactly Ron wanted to discuss with him.

"Something she said yesterday put me to think mate, a lot." Harry's musings were interrupted, immediately thankful that Ron had not noticed at all how he wasn't paying him any attention before, but that little information was enough to make him wonder seriously about what he asked.

He had noticed that Ron had ceased talking, assuming that he was waiting for an answer from his part, "I don't want to have regrets haunting my dreams for the rest of my life mate, I don't want to someday wake up and find..." _That I have done nothing worthwhile with my life..._

Harry didn't needed to see nor hear his friend to notice those words, so he frowned thinking seriously about his friend, "You have power but not control, nor the experience to use it correctly, in fact both of us never ever considered the idea of be more applied to our studies, we... we've... oh hell."

He blanched at his discovery; he had been using Hermione all these years to merely survive, depending almost constantly on his luck and wit... but almost all the time, he had survived thanks to the help of his bushy haired friend, he ignored Ron calls or at least was pretending to, "Ron, what have we be doing this last four years?" This seemed to get the attention of the redhead, "What are you talking about? We have been..."

He didn't let him finish, "We are doing nothing! Four years has passed and in where in our Hogwarts career are we excelling, Quidditch... chess? How will this help us to sustain our life after the school? Or more important, how will this help us to survive Voldemort?" He ignored the surprised shudder of the redhead at the name focusing his mind in more actual matters.

"B... but, we're..."

"We are passing barely thanks to Hermione constant nagging..." Harry urged him.

"That's not true we..."

"Ron you asked me to be truthful, please give me the same and ask you this, when have we truly done our studies by our own volition? Not counting when she made us do it and when we don't have any more options than doing it or fail."

After a few seconds that slowly expanded to minutes, Harry could see the dawning of understanding show in Ronald, "Bloody hell," whispered the boy, "What about... no, but that one time... Bollocks I can't remember anything!"

"Then now you are aware that I can't sincerely answer you in what you are good for because, hell, even I don't know in what I'm good at." Harry stared at his friend, both now very aware of the sad truth of how they had deal with their lives so far, both unknowingly taking a vow to themselves to at least _try _to do better this year."

"BOYS, HAVE YOU FINISHED?" The scream of Molly took Harry out of his musings; each looked at the other, Harry aware that he was frowning all the while, Ron shrugged, "Your call mate, I doubt that the garden will be freer of pest than now."

Harry smiled at that, "WE'RE COMING MRS. WEASLEY!"

Ron began to move ahead of him saying "You know, the girls are probably receiving training in magical household at this moment," Harry affirmed, already knowing where this was heading to, "Maybe we should join them? You know, not be so depending of them?"

Ron seemed to falter for a few minutes before affirming with a little of apprehension, "Yeah, I reckon that to learn a few things would not be bad, especially how to cook." Harry noticed that Ron seemed to brighten at the mere idea of cooking, so he smiled for him, not very fond of the activity thanks to his relatives. In fact, he noticed that his friend seemed to almost glow at the idea of putting his hands on anything related to food, so he wondered aloud, "You know in the Muggle world they are renowned Chefs that are rumored to create dishes so mouth-watering that some pay a lot of money to just taste it."

This seemed to capture the attention of the redhead, so he continued, "You know, you got something there, you got my attention, let's go and learn how to cook a good grilled steak."

**...**

"WHAT?" Harry cringed at the scream of Molly Weasley, his ears were tingling, he was about to say something when Ginny said, "M-mum I... I think this is a good idea, I don't like to cook, and the boys seem eager to learn, let one of them take my place instead."

Hermione seemed to agree even if she evaded his eyes, "I agree Mrs, Weasley, just look at them for the first time they seem eager to learn without coercion." Harry smiled shyly, feeling guilty. Molly he noticed, had sighed then smiled, making the cat a little uncomfortable for some reason.

"Well then, let's pair you up, it will be easier to teach like this." Said Molly, making Harry aware almost immediately of her intentions by a not so subtle look, he tried to glance at Hermione with his most intense look, deciding right there that he wanted her more than little Ginny, she seemed to inhale nervously, almost understanding his intentions making him smile reassuringly at her. He really wanted to know why she was avoiding him and this was the perfect chance to subtlety find the reason.

He looked in Ron's direction, finding him surprisingly not glaring or in a fit of jealousy at the interaction, (finding to his surprise that Ginny was slightly disappointed at it, but that it was Molly who was openly disapproving) it seemed like he was thinking or contemplating something unknown to him. (It tended to happen with Ron and any mention of Food) He noticed that Molly was about to pair them up at how she seemed was the appropriate setting when he took a risk, "This will be fun, girls against boys, and the pair that manage to learn more will clean everything at the end."

All of the involved gasped in surprise, Hermione looked startled confused and hurt, and he focused on her brown eyes, hoping to transmit his intentions, to make her understand his actions, at first she frowned then smiled taking Ginny's hand and declaring. "We are prepared, you boys on the other hand will end cleaning all at the end of the lessons, and I guarantee it."

Harry smiled, "In your dreams Granger," Ron at his right let out an enthusiastic "Yeah!" He could see that his eyes seemed more alive than ever. Hermione and Ginny gaped at his intensity; even Molly seemed surprised never before seeing his son be so passionate about something that wasn't Quidditch.

He was confident now, in fact, he was so convinced of his victory that he claimed boldly. "Bring it on."

**...**

"_Bring it on," _Mocked Ronald making Harry chuckle, "Who knew? Ginny might hate cooking, but hell, doesn't mean she doesn't know how to." Said Ron, the black-haired boy couldn't agree more with that statement.

Harry was aware that even when Ron has lost, that the redhead was in a good mood, almost having a peaceful smile on his face, it seemed to him that his friend could have found one of his fortes, "Chef Ronald, it has a nice ring," He smiled noticing how much Ronald seemed to like the idea, seeing that not even losing to the girls has diminished his eagerness. Ron, after drying the dish in his hand and putting it in it's place, added. "Yeah mate, it does."

**...**

Harry couldn't evade throwing the door behind him, trying to ignore the screams and yells that were coming from the kitchen of the Burrow. How could things have turned like that with just a little question?

How could Molly disregard Ronald like that, her own son? Weren't Mothers supposed to understand and support the dreams of their children? How could Molly be so... so Petunia-like?

He and Ron had decided to ask for lessons at magical cooking, Harry only taking part of it just to give his friend a chance to excel at something that he seemed to enjoy very much. But the woman received the petition badly, screaming nonsense, scolding them and even putting blame on Hermione for her son thinking unmanly things.

Ronald of course got mad, and screamed too, trying to make her understand, but sadly he was overshadowed by the power behind the lungs of his mother, Ginny, Harry could remember clearly, seemed crestfallen, hiding behind the table. He'd never seen her look more lost or afraid in his life, (Excluding the chamber of secrets of course, but that was in an unknown place so said reaction was understandable, but now she was supposed to be in her home the most secure place to her in the world) Hermione for her part seemed surprised, hurt and betrayed at the same time.

What Molly screamed at them wasn't pretty, they were the most hurtful things that such a loved woman in their lives could say, it was a betrayal of their trust, and hopes, it was a direct collision between opinions and ideals that could and was shattering all the good the woman has done for them.

Her children were cowering under her glare of disapproval, but Harry and the brown-headed girl weren't, Hermione was putting a stop to her pestering, she and Harry (even if he didn't wanted to admit it) were raised in the twentieth century, with different beliefs of what can or cannot be done by a girl or a boy. This seemed to clash violently with the beliefs of Molly; to the point of making her humiliate her own Children (or more precisely, Ron) for considering the mere idea of seriously try to learn how to cook, a work that was prominently attached to the women in the magical society.

It wasn't that she despised her son for the mention; it was more like she was afraid of something, or more precisely scared; and was lashing at them trying to prevent whatever she was thinking, apparently afraid of it becoming real at all.

Sadly, she lashed out at Ron, Harry, and lastly Hermione, but mostly at Hermione; she seemed to blame her for what her son asked, and at some point he could see that she partially blamed him too, but that the entire guilt for her was focused on Hermione. It was at that point that Harry needed to escape this place as it was too much like Privet Drive to his taste.

But more importantly, it was to be far away from Molly, to save her of the cat's fury, to get away and to control his urging to devour her, but most importantly, to ignore his own conscience that was telling him to go with the cat's idea...

So he got up and took to the forest, ignoring the yells of outrage of Molly at his actions, it seemed that not a single one of her children had ever got away from her like that, and she found the action like a direct blow to her power. He soon noticed that something made her shut up, then he could listen to the door opening and closing violently behind him.

Harry was not that far away from the Burrow, in fact, he was at the same spot where he and Ron where cleaning the garden of pests yesterday. He looked behind him, hearing, smelling, and feeling that Hermione was crying and going to the pond in the forest. He waited for Ronald or Ginny to come to her aid, not wanting to talk to anybody at this moment. But the door never opened, so that left the work of following and comforting her to him.

It took him five minutes to catch up with her, and she again seemed to be trying to ignore him, even in this situation she seemed to hold a grudge against him, and Harry was pretty much too angry to stand that kind of treatment from anybody at the moment.

So he was about to tell her his mind when she beat him to it, "Harry, do you think I should go back to my parents?" She didn't even look at him when she asked that, she was completely focused on the surface of the pond, and he couldn't for the power of his beloved broom really understand why the idea of her ignoring him now was such a throbbing pain in his chest.

He was quite lost to be frank, "I-I don't know," Harry was feeling so lost, so full of emotions, so raw, it seemed like she was in a similar estate trying to gain control of her emotions in vain, but was only badly masquerading her boiling feelings.

"I see," was her response, it was flat, without an inflection of emotion, so not like her at all, that he couldn't evade saying, "I don't know, it is your decision, but I don't want you to go."

She gasped after hearing that, making her finally look at him directly, "Really?" her face seemed so frail, so lost and full of hope, again he couldn't evade the feeling of possessiveness that he was feeling for her, too intense to ignore anymore. "I don't want you to be too far away from me," he ignored her gasp, he was more focused on how much she seemed to radiate something that attracted him, an aura that was making him crazy with desire.

Then the cat finally made him take a risk, one that Harry was pretty sure he would never take if he was normal. He closed the distance and impulsively kissed her hard on her lips, at first she was too surprised to do anything, but then she struggled a little only to stop and reciprocate, not knowing why. Harry separated from her ignoring her call of his name, too focused on a spot of her anatomy to notice. Upon getting access he proceeded to firmly bite the spot between her hyoideus and the trapezius, too close to the Subclavian and carotid arteries for her taste, but ignoring it altogether at the sensations invading her body making her cry out in surprise, pain, and pleasure.

The cat inside of Harry was pushing little waves of magic into the bite trying to do something, making Hermione moan in ecstasy as the flow grew steadier inside of her, aligning _something _inside of her to be a complete part of her persona and not just a hidden element like it has been to this moment, just dormant, completely suppressed.

She moaned, and Harry could feel that whatever he had done, that the flow and the feeling of Hermione were now at least to him, felt complete. She was moaning his name with every lick, kiss, and hiss he was giving to her. In fact he now understood the smell he had smelled for a while and now around her was sexual excitement, that the aroma that was eluding him a few days ago was just her being a really nasty girl.

One that had never been more attractive to him.

Then the sound of a bunch of birds flying over the forest woke them up, breaking them of the magical trance they were in, (making the cat absolutely furious for the interruption.) and making their brains take a hold of their actions, both were too raw minutes ago thanks to Molly's treatment, but this occurrence between the two seemed to clear the fog that was occluding their judgment.

Hermione blushed when she noticed what exactly had happened, she was looking him at his eyes, trying to decipher something the he wasn't aware of. She smiled, like always a beautiful sight, but now more so than ever if you asked him.

The two of them separated with some reluctance, knowing that if somebody was coming to find them it was for the best that they didn't find them like that, not yet at least.

Something had changed between them in that moment... and he wasn't sure if it was for the better or for the worst, but seeing her swing her hips like that, made him realize that no matter what, it could be one of the best things that had ever happened in his life, ignoring the '_so close!_' the cat was hissing he laid on the soft grass and stared at the sky.

**...**

The next few days were really uncomfortable, Molly seemed to disapprove of Hermione, for whatever she had said when Harry stormed out of the kitchen, but Arthur for the first time seemed to have put his foot down and controlled, (barely if you asked him) his wife in whatever decision she has decided after Hermione got away.

Of course, this didn't prevent the woman from glaring at the girl, making the interactions in the burrow almost unbearable for everyone.

Hermione seemed to be always in her room with Ginny, or at the pond, sadly he hadn't had a chance to talk to her about what happened that day, simply because Molly was taking offense to the fact that they had gone away unsupervised for approximately half an hour in the forest. So he was constantly in the company of a gloomy and down cast Ron, or a shy and embarrassed Ginny.

So his only time to be himself was his encounters with Luna, that sadly seemed to be more and more difficult with the passing of the time, the ritual of mating of the faeries was coming to an end and with them she would probably go too, to whatever place was her home.

Another occurrence that was happening out of his control, was Luna behavior, she seemed to know something that he didn't, she always looked in some direction, smiled, and made him dance in that direction, exposing him to an invisible being, that maybe only Nymphs could see.

In fact, he could still remember that one night, or more exactly, the third night after the fight in the Burrow, she had asked him to stay on the hollow tree for fifteen minutes so she could take care of something, he of course didn't comprehend why she was asking this but did it anyway. After those minutes (Where she seemed to talk to someone, he was guessing more Nymphs that she didn't want him to meet) expired she did come back, this time with a contemplative look on her face and a relieved smile that put his heart on hold.

Sadly that look made him remember a certain bushy haired friend, making him realize for the first time he was pursuing two girls at the same time. He was trying to feel ashamed of his actions, but the cat never let him take that path again, in fact it seemed pleased with the whole situation.

He was about to express that concern with Luna when she pounced upon him and proceeded to ravish his mouth completely, her hands where roaming his body, touching, caressing, and taking whatever she liked. It was then that Harry noticed the smell of sexual desire, she wanted him, badly, and was trying to make him ready enough to take her.

If he was the old Harry, this would surely raise alarms in his head, and he would, in a display of honor and chivalry, have stopped her, but he wasn't that boy anymore. This boy was bolder, more driven than the original ever was, and the cat imploring and demanding to recreate the scene with Hermione with Luna was an impulse that he didn't deny. His arms took her hip, bringing her down hard on his length, almost connecting them; she was moaning, gasping, and calling his name. Licking his skin and biting his neck subtlety imploring him to continue the grinding of his genitalia against hers.

It was like she had gotten permission to do so, and Harry thought that maybe she has asked permission to the others Nymphs, maybe that explained the very subtle smell of arousal that was coming from behind the blond, for some reason it was a familiar aroma, but Luna was too close to him and was clouding his senses with her heat, smell, texture and flavor. Hell she was even a sexy thing to his ears with how delicate her moans were.

Then, she took the final step and enclosed his manhood with her vagina, moaning loudly in a blend of pain, arousal and pleasure. He took her hips, making the contact more intense, more driven than before, accelerating the pace, ignoring that he was looking for a certain spot on her neck, that he was taking her virginity more like an animal than a human, fast and strong, nor the aura that was surrounding them as he bit her neck, she screamed, no longer in mild pleasure, but more like an explosion of it. Enclosing her in ecstasy, her eyes were cloudy, like she was in a trance, she smiled as he bit even harder, finally drawing blood, she screamed an unholy "YES, YES I DO!" To the air, and the surroundings seemed to explode with raw magic at the conclusion of the ritual.

The Faeries where in a frenzy, mating like there was no tomorrow, the air was full of sexual drive, of completion, and just a bit of ozone and energy.

Harry screamed, impaling Luna to his fullest, reaching his end with an almighty roar, transforming in his half-beast form, more refined, more powerful, and more complete than before. Luna was smiling and shaking, her arms surrounding Harry's neck to maintain the contact; she seemed to be experiencing the same change, only slower and steadier than that of the male supporting her. Her moans revealed that the transformation was without pain, that she was really enjoying every minute of it, the ozone around her finally took the shape of a Lioness that roared at the sky in euphoria at her birth.

Harry slowly took Luna away from him, ignoring her cry of protest, he was being again controlled by his and the cat's instincts, and they both finally identified the aroma of Hermione Granger.

She was so close and she was creating too many pheromones for him to ignore, the anthropomorphic creature smiled, finally understanding that he could end what he initiated days before.

He liberated a now tired and satisfied Luna, who was clearly purring in mirth, she looked at him, and he was now aware that she was permitting him do this, that she wanted this, and Harry knew at that moment that he was seeing the eyes of his Alpha. He nodded, liking the idea very much. His run was too fast to for the sexually driven Hermione to escape from, she gasped when the invisibility cloak was taken from her, and she looked with surprise, fear and, excitement at the being that was in front of her.

**...**

He radiated power, a power like she had never felt before, she moaned his name, she loved him, and she was guilty of the sin of loving a wizard named Harry James Potter. She had resigned herself to be nothing more than the sister he never had, and was beginning to launch hints at Ronald direction, but then at the reunion at the Burrow this year, Harry finally seemed to take notice of her, to take notice of the swagger of her hips when it was intended, of the talks, the hints, everything.

Harry wasn't a touchy boy, he seemed to be uncomfortable with it, and she sadly was of the touching type, she loved to touch, caress and feel, so him corresponding those touches has been glorious, but then she noticed that something was wrong, she knew him too well to know that this was not the Harry she was accustomed to. So she very carefully took the Invisibility cloak from his Trunk, she knew him too well to know that he never took out this article in particular in the Burrow simply because he didn't needed to hide here.

Here he could pretend to be part of a family and he didn't want to miss anything under his cloak, so she was secure for the moment. Sadly what she encountered wasn't what she was expecting. She was expecting him to be masturbating, or doing something _other_ than dancing with an unknown girl. She was livid that he was flirting with her during the day and dancing NAKED to a very beautiful girl at night.

She was furious, he was playing with her, but, she couldn't evade the need to see him, to care for him, so she continued to spy on his dance nights closely, later identifying the girl as one of the Ravenclaws in the same year as Ginny.

At first, she tried to ignore him, to get him know that she wasn't a second best, but then, the fight with Molly occurred and she was too angry, too frustrated with the narrow minded woman to remember WHY exactly she was mad at Harry, but then those words, in conjunction with his presence and his eyes took her mind away, something inside of her _loved_ this new Harry too much to ignore him anymore. That feeling, that need, was driving her mad and she needed an outlet, something to discharge it completely and Harry was her objective.

When he bit her, her world changed, she was complete, she was heading to her full potential, she wasn't hiding anymore, then a voice was offering something too good to dismiss and she wanted to accept, but then they got distracted and the voice disappeared leaving her empty and unable to reach that _something_ that made her feel so alive and complete.

It was maddening, she wanted it, she needed it, and was even willing to share Harry just to obtain it. Of course all of this was in theory, Luna seemed at first reluctant, but then she changed her opinion, it was as if she could read the need on Hermione eyes, she smiled and told her to wait then pounced on Harry like there was no tomorrow.

Hermione was feeling shocked, betrayed, angry, and even aroused at the same time, and even this far away from them she could feel the sensation of completeness surround her mind and body, she touched everything, it was like having electricity on her hands, making all sensations more intense than ever, she rubbed herself, almost mistreating her clitoris by how hard she rubbed it, she needed badly to reach that feeling of completion but was unable to.

Then Harry finally noticed her, she didn't know how, but he encountered her, and was in front of her in all his glory, she didn't care that he wasn't human anymore, he was Harry, her Harry, she moaned his name and reached to him, touching his manhood with a force that she didn't know she had. She moved her hand, stimulating him to stand and take her, she needed him, and was so focused on him that the pair of hands touching her breast over the fabric of her camisole, (she was always prepared to go to sleep after the dance ritual, and it was comfortable) she moaned, not caring that the blond seemed to know where to exactly touch to make her feel on fire. She pulled, pushed and twisted exactly how she liked to be touched, Hermione screamed in arousal, "HARRY!" she couldn't stand it anymore, she raised her camisole, exposing her wet core to him, asking him to take her, she moaned when the girl bit her neck, probably marking her, it was in the left side of her neck being the mark that Harry had putted on her on the right side, (a mark that she was ratter proud of, only regretting that they couldn't end it that day) she screamed to the skies, opening her legs more and letting Harry reach her more private area, he didn't lose too much time to open her completely with his manhood, pounding savagely, not feeling pain at all thanks to her juices lubricating her core. Then like he did with the blonde, he bit _hard_ on the old mark and she fell into a sea of lust and desire.

The voice asked again and she accepted, feeling how she was changing, how another being was growing and feeling pleasure alongside her, an old friend that she had unjustly incarcerated in the most recondite place of her mind.

The cat part of her was rejoicing. Renewed and changed, it twisted, taking a new form, that of a snow leopard, bigger, bushier and stronger that the simple house cat she used to be. Then with a roar of ecstasy the three of them reached a peak of completion, they were no longer only three, they were now six.

**TBC**

**It may look like bashing, but what's happening with Molly is a clash between ideals. Something that usually happens with this kind of story, sadly when you're mad you tend to say things that you really didn't.**


	6. Chapter 6

**H**arry finally woke up from his good dream. After a few seconds of contemplation, he was feeling not only more relaxed, but in fact better than ever. He was surrounded by a sensation that if he was to be honest, he didn't want to lose. He was feeling warm and loved, a really great sensation to feel. And that's not even mentioning the dream with Luna and Hermione, sure it was a bit bolder than the ones he was used to have, but it was a impossible to have the both of them making love with him and each other, its veracity was really unreal. He never would find a Hermione Jane Granger that would scream his name to the winds in a sexual euphoria while a girl she barely knows was touching her mound while she was riding him like her favourite pony.

But of course, he was very aware that that was only his old conscience talking, trying to convince himself of the unreality of what had happened. Of course his new self was laughing at the innocence of his old personality after enjoying such an experience. But then, he was aware of the ramifications of his actions and was prepared to take responsibility like any man should.

He opened his eyes, receiving (after his pupils adapted themselves to the poor illumination) the information he needed to take the correct conclusions.

The cat had not only made him sleep with his best female friend, but with a magical creature, (She had to be one, no human spine can, or even should, really, bend like that) and for lack of a better word, imprinted their essences, their souls, with a tiny fragment of his magic, creating a new cat that would live symbiotically with the girls for the rest of their naturals lives. And not only that, the cat was growing stronger, he could feel it. He was more powerful now that he had finally reached one of his objectives.

He could feel him, almost too happy with this situation. But more importantly, he could almost hear it, before he could only feel him, the feline would 'radiate' an emotion and he could give an approximate interpretation of what the cat needed or was trying to say to him by comparing it to his own emotions, an occurrence that only took surprisingly less than a second. (He had noticed that he now was processing information better, faster, and more accurately than ever before)

But now a tiny voice, almost like a whisper but less than one was in his mind, slowly growing with the passing of time.

He finally understood that inside of him was another being, not just a companion, but more precisely another entity that was growing in intelligence with his own experiences. And now he'd, in a sense, infected them. No, that wasn't the right word... afflicted! Yes _afflicted_the girls with this new creature, making him not so special any more, not so unique.

Frankly he didn't know if he should be happy or terrified.

He looked in the direction of Hermione, who was now transformed in her half-beast form; she had brownish fur, with black circles on her skin and a few white patches, she was gorgeous. She was powerful, she was lethal... and she was going to kill him for doing this to her...

He really hoped that they could return to their human shapes because he doubted that the Weasleys, or anyone in the magical world for that matter, would accept them like this.

At least not now. In a few years maybe, but that's a big, almost monumental, _maybe._

"She isn't going anywhere Harry." The voice of Luna woke him up of his self reproaching; (the cat was too occupied getting accustomed to his new way of communication to care about correcting him) He smiled, forgetting his fears for the future at the mere sound of her voice. "I know, but I was wondering more about _our_future." He confessed, feeling too comfortable to move from the middle of the two feline ladies.

Hermione snorted, a sound he didn't even know she could made, "And what kind of future where you thinking Harry?" She was calm, too calm to be precise. He knew she was scared of what had happened, and more precisely in what she had become. He squeezed her with his right arm, trying to reassure her. "I will not lie; the future that awaits us is a difficult one. One that will not forgive even the most tiniest of mistakes." The voice of Luna vociferating what he was feeling didn't helped. "And it grows in difficultly if we affront it alone."

"I will not permit myself, or any of us, to be alone. Not anymore..." Her tone before he made that promise was almost too haunted for his taste, so he added it with the very intention of making it real.

"You are not invincible, Harry, nor are you capable to be in all places at the same time." Hermione said, making Harry cringe with how hopeless she sounded, "The magical society will do anything to destroy us, or make us profitable for them." He knew that she was trembling because her mind was reaching all of the horrible possibilities that the future could bring.

"Then I will be powerful enough to change this so called society, everything to make this accursed world a place worth living." He pulled both girls close to him, trying to find comfort in their heat and closeness. Hermione sighed then separated from him with reluctance.

"Harry we need to talk."

"Hermione..."

"Harry we have to find what has happened to us,"

"Hermione!"

"It's probably some kind of curse..."

"Hermione you're panicking, you should know right now that this is nothing more than the result of your choice, there is no going back now." The voice of Luna was firm, almost reproaching, and Harry couldn't stop her nor correct her, even he had heard the choice, she wasn't forced to take it, and even the sexual pleasure would have been the same the only difference would be that she wouldn't end with a symbiotic cat attached to her soul and magical core.

Then Harry noticed something, "Luna, I believe that the transformation Hermione underwent was different than yours." He couldn't evade it anymore, even before the mating ritual had begun, she already had an entity inside of her, a really suppressed part of her that got loosened with his presence.

The brown haired girl sighed, almost reading the mind of the boy, "I think that the cat-girl I became or the cat part in me was not completely eliminated, McGonagall only got a solution for my problem by forcing me to complete the transformation, making me an animagus, the problem is, that my animal form was not a house cat, so the transformation kind of fused the new and old animals making almost impossible for me to transform back into a cat after I was returned to a normal state. So they suppressed my animal form, destroying all my possibilities of being an animagus forever, so I sort of ignored it till the voice simply disappeared." She was now seeing almost dispassionately her hands, caressing the now light fur that was covering her skin.

Harry was feeling miserable for doing this to her, "Do... do you regret this?" Luna and Hermione reacted badly to his comment, almost breaking their necks with how violently they changed their directions to look at him.

"Never!" both of them shouted simultaneously looking at each and other for a few seconds before breaking in tiny fits of giggles then laughing openly.

The dark haired boy was sincerely confused by their reactions, "I don't understand, both of you look so sad with this change." That broke them up from the spell they were in, "Harry, we're not sad, we're contemplating the possibilities." Luna told him, surprising the brown-haired witch by stealing the words right out of her mouth.

Still too focused on his own fears, he told them, "I don't understand," so Hermione, not wanting to be left behind explained to him. "Harry, I don't know if Luna feels the same, but I feel not only better than before, I feel _complete_, as if a part I didn't know about was missing has finally been put back in its place, making me realise just how hollow I was before."

Luna nodded before adding, "Not only that, we are thinking of the possibilities that would occur if we are not careful; public reactions, our friends, our enemies, everything that we can think of."

Hermione smiled, knowing what she was coming to say, "It's like our minds are one, and at the same time they are not. I don't know you Harry, but I signed two contracts; the one your cat offered me, and the one the cat of Luna's did as well."

This put a complete stop to the happiness of Harry's cat, which was now completely aware of what they were saying with his full attention. "How it's that possible? Luna's cat is not supposed to be THAT powerful; it took several weeks to make _my_cat capable of doing that." Harry said completely preoccupied by the situation. Luna smirked, confessing, "Hermione might have a suppressed Animagus form, but I have been living with faeries all my life, it's possible that I might have some more gifts than my Mage Sight."

Hermione opened her eyes in wonder and surprise, followed closely by Harry, "You have Mage Sight? How? It's supposed to be one of the hardest kinds of magic out there, only used by old mages that have studied the ability for decades before controlling it! And you're saying that yours is a natural gift?" At the nod of the blond, she almost fainted.

"It's impressive, but what's Mage Sight?" Asked Harry, completely and honestly confused by this discovery. Luna explained it to him seeing that Hermione was too flabbergasted at the moment.

"Mage Sight is the ability to see magic itself Harry, the shape, the colour, the force of the flow, it's a much appreciated ability that only can be gained by years of training, only in a few cases the son or daughter of a Witch or Wizard trained on the art, gain the ability itself in a natural way." Luna was smiling slightly at the reaction of both of them, "It's very useful to create new spells, magical wards and barriers especially."

Harry frowned for a few seconds, seeing the point of the explanation but missing the one where this made the cat inside of Luna capable of creating a contract in such a close amount of time. Seeing this, the blond explained. "Harry, do you know what this is?" Lifting the object in her hand she offered a clear view of it to the teens, clearly amused by her own discovery.

"It's a crystal," Was the response of Harry, Hermione for her part know much more about the matter, "It's a quartz, Harry, a magical rock that absorb and stores magic, it's partially used to craft runes or to power up wards, it can be used to heal too."

Luna nodded, smiling sadly for some reason, "This is one of the few mementos of my mother, she used to come here with me and my father to dance with her beloved fairies; it used to be a tradition to do so every year." The smile disappeared from her face completely, "When she died, I took the crystal from her hands before the department of mysteries took her body away, My father never forgot that, and his distaste for the government only got worse, he slowly forgot about the tradition, so I took it and charged it every year, storing enough magic to launch a few spells without the need of a wand, sadly, it lacks the finesse and refinement of a wand, so I can't transmigrate something with them, charms, jinxes or curses need too much control and refinement to be really effective, with this I can store magic and discharge it in a common spell like Stupefy if I needed." Seeing them put so much attention on her was making her happy, so she continued. "I have thirteen Quartz fully charged in my room, every time that I can afford to buy one I come here to charge it with the magical force that the Faeries expel in their mating ritual."

"Luna this is educative, but, I still don't see..." Interrupted Harry gaining a disapproving look from Hermione, amusing Luna in the process, she pointed the crystal in the direction of Harry chest and seriously said. "Stupefy," Harry cringed, waiting for the spell to come and claim its victim, only to find it completely ineffective.

Hermione gasped, "I thought you said that it was charged," Her eyes widened as the realization sunk in, looking at the now bland rock suspiciously, "It was completely charged two hours ago. One year of raw magic was stored in this Quartz."

"Wow, so much in such a small rock," Was the opinion of Harry, amusing Luna who was giggling at his naivety, confusing the brown haired girl in the process. "What is so funny, I think it's a valid question." Luna looked at them for a second before answering, "You are thinking in Muggle terms, space, weight, they do not matter nor can be applied to really measure magic. Nobody knows how to really measure it. We just tend to describe something by how much can be used to our benefit, for example. This tiny crystal has magical energy for a year because it will last a year as a magical battery to a ward. It can stand two hundred and sixty normal healing sessions, and one hundred and seven long ones, we measure by how much it endures, not by how much it can absorb, but yes, even by normal measures that is too much magic."

Hermione frowned, now slightly curious, "So what does this have to do with our situation," Harry for his part nodded, not that the conversation wasn't interesting, but he frankly wanted to know what was happening. Luna sighed, not really sure of how they would take the news. "The cat or, more precisely, _my_cat absorbed it."

"What!" was the response of both teens, not believing such words, so Luna proceeded to explain, "Harry, had you not noticed that your cat seemed to grow up or mature with certain events or environments? Have you not felt his need to eat someone or something?"

Harry grimaced, now finding the full of their attention on him, "Once, when Molly was reproaching us a few days ago, it was trying to devour her, or more precisely, the magic that she was radiating." Hermione gasped, now understanding that Harry had more reasons than Molly's treatment to react how he did that day.

Luna nodded, fully understanding now, "Harry I know that this could be a blow to your ego, but my cat is much more mature than yours or the one inside of Hermione, thanks to what had absorbed from the quartz. Mine can talk, think, and probably in a few weeks, it will be able to separate from me for a short period of time."

Harry was surprised by this, Hermione too, hell even the cats were surprised, he didn't know that, they had now more reasons to be careful about who was in the know or not. The magical society didn't take too well to those creatures with the ability to steal magic from others.

He took an immediate decision, "Luna can we absorb the rest of your Crystals?" Hermione gasped, looking at him for such a drastic decision, "Harry," she reproached, knowing that he was asking even for the crystals that the mother of Luna had charged. Luna smiled, understanding him. "If you can come tomorrow, I will have them there for you and Hermione to absorb; I have thirteen, not counting this one, left. So two or five wouldn't make any damage."

Hermione nodded, slightly fearful of what she perceived from Luna, "Yes Hermione, it's better if we take this slowly, we don't want the cat to grown too powerful, if they do so and we don't grow alongside them, they could dominate our bodies, and I frankly don't like the idea. They are too young and too savage to not be noticed."

Harry frowned, "That explains how your cat managed to create a pact, but that still leaves the 'why' without an answer."

Luna and Hermione smiled, "We share a mental connection very similar to telepathy, but not really. Even if we can share emotions, ideas, and presence." Hermione told him. He responded with a very intelligent, "Huh?" making Luna giggle.

"We can read each others minds Harry, I have a part of Hermione in me, and she has a part of me in her."

"Between us females we share minds, with you, the male, we share our hearts and bodies, and with the cats our souls and magic. We share everything." The girls said in unison.

He smiled, "I feel kind of jealous of that," They both chuckled, "With time, the cats will grow stronger enough to share our minds too, so this is only a temporary advantage for us girls." Hermione answered.

Luna nodded looking at the sky, "We need to go home. You two are at great risk of being discovered if you remain here for any longer. Tomorrow is sadly the last time we can encounter each another at this spot, in three days I have to..." at this point, Luna eyes opened even more, making Hermione Giggle, "I have to go and re-join my _sisters."_Harry seemed to dislike the idea, "Will I see you again?" Luna nodded; slowly kissing his lips claiming him again as his Alpha.

"I will not be gone for too long, and I am sure that Hermione will be a very _delicious_partner, after all she is your Beta." Seeing this, she then looked directly to the eyes of said brown haired girl, making her blush with their intensity. It was at that moment that Hermione noticed that they were again in their human form. "Oh my god, Harry, we're normal, what happened?"

Harry smiled, "From what I can feel, we're still too young to maintain that form for too long, so to conserve energy we regressed to our original state." He looked at Luna who got a better contact with them. She nodded, "Our transformation is pretty much a combination of the animagus and metamorphic process, it is done with our consent at the moment we accepted the symbiosis, so it is thankfully without the pain that creatures like the werewolves suffer each full moon, that's the difference between a curse and a blessing."

"See you tomorrow Luna."

"See you tomorrow Harry, Hermione."

**XxX**

"**A**re you sure about this Harry?" Luna asked, seeing as how he was looking at the crystals with a tiny hint of doubt, he nodded but answered sincerely, "I am scared of losing myself, the cat once took complete control of my body, I ended eating a poor bird, I don't want to wake up and find that I have done something much worse." '_Like Killing and eating Molly...'_

Hermione smiled, almost hearing those words, "Nothing of the sort will happen, you are safe with us Harry." She squeezed his hand reassuringly, hoping that that would be enough to calm him. He smiled, looking at her for a few seconds before giving his entire attention to the blonde, "OK Luna, how do I do this?"

The girl smiled, reaching for his hand with hers, trying to give him the crystal, "Like this," and as easy as that, with just barely touching the fully charged quartz he absorbed the magic, surprising himself with how easy it was.

_'__That was delicious._' Harry gasped, hearing clearly the voice of the beast, who was now purring in satisfaction inside of his head. "Bloody Hell," was his response.

"Harry!" Hermione berated making him smile in response.

"That was... too easy, suspiciously easy," He confessed, thinking of the possibilities, but Luna confirmed his unasked questions, "Yeah, it's a wonder why the Burrow is still standing in one piece, after all it's an edification that can only stand thanks to how much magic it has been imbued in the structure."

Hermione gasped, now understanding their point, "Wow, this is dangerous, we can't let the cats absorbs whatever they want, we could die, or cause a catastrophe."

Luna smiled, "That's why we are making them absorb the magic on the crystals, to avoid a catastrophe, and the attention that it would bring upon us." She took another crystal in her hand, absorbing the magic to herself immediately smiling reassuringly at them, "Okay, I shall name you, Persephone." The out of the blue decision obviously surprising him and Hermione.

"You named your cat?" Asked Harry, a little confused by her action, '_Well a name should be much better than continuing to be called Cat. Don't you think, Scar?__'_The black haired teens eyes widened in surprise at that statement, looking how Hermione absorbed her own portion of magic.

"Harry?" Asked the blond girl a little cautiously seeing his behaviour, "Oh, sorry, I am not accustomed to hear a voice in my head, at least not one calling me names."

_'__Get used to it.__'_

Luna chuckled, "Take it easy Harry, it's pretty simple once you get accustomed to it. Now, seeing as Hermione is too occupied getting to know her new friend, you should absorb the next one." He nodded after hearing her, touching the crystal and easily absorbing the energy.

_'__Yes, that's it, one more and I will be capable of separating from you, at least for a short while.__'_

That made Harry think, "Luna do you think that if we absorb enough magic, that the cats could separate completely?"

_'__I'm sorry but, no. we are together for the rest of our natural life,___get used to it_.__'_

Luna for her part frowned for a second before answering, "From what Persephone told me, we can't be separated for too long, they are part of ourselves now, so even when they have a conscience separate from ours, their souls, their cores, are fused to ours. So the physical manifestation will slowly disappear and they will be back inside us."

That was when Hermione finally exclaimed, "I shall call you Renata." She smiled, seeming too pleased with her choice. Luna smiled saying, "Reborn eh? What a wonderful choice."

_'__I want a name Scar...__'_

"Okay that's it I'll name you if you stop calling me that."

_'__I don't promise anything for when I am upset.__'_

Harry nodded, understanding that at least, "What about Jäger? It's mean Hunter in German, it's one of the names of Finnegan's favourite football players.

_'__It's appropriate.__'_

Harry sighed, at least happy that the cat seemed content with his choice. He looked at Hermione again who was sitting with her eyes closed, seemingly lost in a conversation with her new friend. He frowned, "We have to get accustomed to them fast, we can't be like that in the middle of Hogwarts or in any public place, it's too dangerous."

Luna nodded, touching Hermione to wake her up of her deep conversation, "Hermione, you were lost to us for a few minutes." The brown headed girl flushed scarlet at that statement, "I'm sorry, but I was questioning Renata about her knowledge, she seemed to have some basic points gained by instincts, but so far, her main knowledge is based on what she had lived with me so far. So I was showing her my entire life to make her more aware of herself."

The blond haired witch smiled fondly, "It seems that you and I will be very good friends indeed." Saying that she looked in the direction of Harry, who smiled, "I guess that my cat is more advanced than yours in that aspect, he seemed to know my entire life by the moment I woke up after the contract.

_'__Of course that I am more advanced, I'm the original, the only, their cats are basically a clone of myself that had adapted to their genetic code, absorbing it and erased mine to make a different genotype, phenotype, and of course sex. We can't reproduce if we are all male can we?__'_

"No, I don't think so, but well I was wondering..."

"Harry you're talking to yourself, we can't hear what your cat is saying." Hermione told him making him blush, being as fascinated in the conversation as she was a few minutes ago.

Luna smiled giving him the last of his crystals, "Here with this you should, in theory, separate from your cat." He took the crystal from her as the last one was handed to Hermione, who took it almost giddily from her hands. "This should be interesting."

"Should, but it is not, we really need to be careful, our lives depend on that, one slip and we could end up as potion ingredients." The tone Luna used was serious, too serious to not take it accordingly, so he nodded, so far this magical world hasn't been the most secure environment for himself as a normal human, he didn't want to find how perilous could be with him as a magical creature.

"Oh," Was the word that emerged from the lips of the brown haired girl after she absorbed her final crystal, Luna smiled seeing how she was putting different shades of red on her cheeks and neck. "Yes Hermione, he is."

"Huh?" Was the articulated response of Harry, earning a chorus of giggles from the blond, "Nothing Harry, Hermione just discovered my opinion of your body."

She seemed amused that now both teens where trying to outdo the other with their reddening cheeks. So far Hermione seemed to be winning making her ears almost as red as a tomato. More because she wondered out loud if they tasted like one too.

**XxX**

**O**ne of the first things that Harry noticed was that his reactions and body language had changed after the absorption, sometimes he liked to see the open foliage with a feeling of delight and adventure, others he seemed more entertained so far by; Butterflies, moths, mice, birds, and even little particles of dust would catch his attention and desire to pursue.

In the two days he'd started this habit he'd explained it away as a training regimen to better himself in the art of seeking an almost impossible to catch objective, but even he was doubting that this excuse would be bought for too much longer, more because he hadn't used his beloved broom once, Merlin bless Sirius for giving his precious to him.

But right now, that wasn't what was bothering Harry. No, something so trivial like that, it was Hermione's reaction to him lately. After Luna's parting, she seemed normal, almost giddy with this situation.

The first day without Luna she was normal, always studious, sometimes she pretended to sleep, but Molly wasn't the type to condone loitering on her house, they HAD to be doing something to justify their living in the Weasley home.

Nothing too different from their normal lives, even when a sometimes glaring Molly wasn't a constant in their past years (At least not directed at them when she thought they weren't giving her any attention.) at the Burrow. So far he found her to be pleased with herself and her new friend. But sadly even that didn't last.

At the second day she seemed to be consumed by something, she was evading him or at least not looking him directly at his eyes and it was worrying him. So after the match of Quidditch he excused himself from the boys, and girl, and took her aside to discover what was happening. What he discovered wasn't what he was expecting.

"Harry, do you really think that this was normal? I feel manipulated, not by you, but by my own desires and hormones, Renata told me that you woke her up from her sleep, that it was your pheromones what were making me desire you so much…"

"Hermione please…"

"Harry please! I still love you but you need to hear me first. You are my best friend, but this desire was so sudden that I'm not really sure if these feelings are mine or from Renata, she loves you and Jäger so much that what I feel pales in comparison, in fact most of my behaviour two days ago was because Luna and I were sharing our feelings about you."

Harry seemed stricken, this wasn't something he wanted to hear, Jäger wasn't too pleased either, but so far he seemed to know something that he didn't, some kind of understanding about this situation that he was failing to grasp.

He asked fearfully, "You are ending the relationship?" This seemed to make her frantic, "HARRY NO, PLEASE NO, YOUR... your friendships is too important to me to lose over this. Just please understand, I want to find if what I feel is real and not the echoes of Renata… give me time to find my answers, to-to." She looked at the distance. In the direction of the boys, Harry didn't look back as he already knew that she was looking at Ron.

_**'**__**Don't let her go, she is ours, not HIS!**__**'**_ Jäger bellowed, sadly it was those words that made Harry realise that all of this would have not happened at all without him.

She needed her own space to recollect herself, to put everything in order, to find if her feelings where caused by a mere moment of passion or something more profound. Even he discovered that he needed to know if his feeling for her where his or from Jäger who seemed to like her from the beginning. "I... I understand."

But that didn't explained why it was hurting him so much say those simple words. She smiled at him, possibly knowing how much damage she was doing, Renata seemed restless, shouting and screaming at her for what she had done. "Promise me that we will be friends no matters what happens, please." He smiled after hearing that, he couldn't deny her that, so he nodded, not really sure of how his voice would fair at the moment.

She smiled one last time and without a word parted in the direction of the Burrow, leaving him there, heartbroken and confused, for the first time in weeks he had seen the real Hermione, the one that wasn't a sea of hormones and desire, the one that always over analysed everything.

'_**Kill him, this is our chance. He is approaching us, erase him. Reclaim her.**_' The words of the Thundercat were low, dangerous. As if the words themselves were ready to pounce and kill. Harry growled, he could be confused and hurt but he would never kill his friend over a broken heart. He was better than that, and more importantly, he liked Ron, and his demise would hurt him as much as Hermione.

"Harry mate, are you okay?" He asked, his face full of worry, even when his eyes seemed to glint with a little hope.

"No Ron, I'm not."

"Oh." Was his response, Harry sat with his back on the rock fence of the propriety not looking directly at the redhead or the house, he seemed to be uncomfortable so he added, "Mate, Hermione needs a friend right now."

"But-"

"Ron please, just... I need a few minutes alone… please." His voice wavered, and Ron seemed to understand him, "I might not be as wise (or silly) as Dumbledore, or smart like Hermione, but I–I…" It was at that moment that Harry decided to interrupt him. "Thanks mate, I know that I can count on you."

Ron looked at the ground a small smile on his face that disappeared almost too fast for his taste. He nodded even when he was aware that the black haired teen couldn't see him doing it. "I'll see you in a few minutes then; I will talk to the twins about controlling our mother." And with that he parted with a frown on his face, finally understanding why Hermione constantly told him about his feelings and a teaspoon.

When he could finally redeem himself with Harry, when he finally gained the ability to help his friend at something, he failed completely because he didn't know what to say.

He didn't notice how close Ginny was seeing the scene from behind the patch of trees.

Nor did they noticed how Harry has carved the rocks with his claws, he was fighting all the time for control over his own body, Jäger was very displeased with this development, and tried to take control of the situation by killing the rival.

But Harry wasn't accepting that, not now, not ever. It was a short fight, but in the end Harry barely regained complete control of his body, he frowned deeply, it seemed that this situation had a down side after all.

Sadly he and Hermione maintained a 'distant' relationship at the Burrow for the last three days, to everyone, even Ronald they seemed the same, they bickered, talked and laughed together, it was has if nothing had changed between them.

But it was simply an act, a really well done one, both where praying that it lasted, because now they were going to be under intense scrutiny at Hogwarts.

He sighed, seeing, hearing, and smelling the station of King's cross like he never had done before. It was time to finally go back to Hogwarts again.

**TBC**


	7. Chapter 7

**I consider this, the most decent chapter on the story, mostly because Slicerness corrected the sentences and A. Blackwell the few mistakes that scaped his hand, it was a really hard job.**

**O**ne of the first things that Harry noticed was that the station was a complete nightmare for his newsenses. The aromas, sounds, even the taste was different**. **The air was full of sweat, dust, and carbon. Old and half-rotten food was everywhere on the bins and sometimes on the floor waiting to be removed by an employee.

He was overwhelmed by the difference in the environment and the shouts of Mrs Weasley hastening their pace to make it on time to the train. He shook his head, careful to not lose his glasses in the motion. Even when they weren't necessary for him anymore he found comfort in them, so he replaced his prescription for normal glass, deciding to use them simply because he liked them and was less conspicuous than suddenly not needing them after all these years.

He looked in the direction of Hermione, trying to ignore the way his heart pounded for several different reasons, guilt, jealousy, possessiveness and possibly love were all fighting for dominance. He wasn't really sure if what he was feeling for her was real love or something else, he didn't even know what real love was, never having a good example of it. Vernon and Petunia never were good role models to follow, and while the Weasley couple loved each and other he wasn't sure if that was the kind of relationship he desired. Hell he still wasn't sure of what he truly wanted anymore.

Ron was close to the brunette, trying to reach the train almost as desperately as the rest of them, but he could feel almost smell how much he liked the girl. And he was sure that Hermione could smell it too, even if she was almost as overwhelmed by the environment as him.

"Hurry up, or we're going to lose the train!" Ron screamed after hearing what was possibly the last warning whistle from the machine, as he moved towards the stairs even faster. "Ronald Weasley! Aren't you going to say goodbye to your mother?" Molly screamed. Gaining the attention of everyone in the immediate area.

Ron groaned in embarrassment "Mum!" That comment was of course dismissed by his mother as unimportant. Harry gave a muttered "Goodbye Mrs Weasley." And rushed behind Hermione. Who seemed to say her farewell from the inside of the enormous machine. He could feel Molly's disapproving stare on his back, and knew that she was going to voice her displeasure when another whistle announced the parting of the train, waking her up from her rant to usher them inside, apparently forgetting their transgression.

He was following Hermione closely, trying to talk to her in the short time where they where alone, but she seemed to not share this desire so he let it be, knowing that it was her decision and hers alone. It didn't matter how much he wanted her to come back. Hell, even he wasn't sure if these feelings were his or from Jäger. He didn't doubt that he liked them though. He loved the sensation of her lips against his, her smell; everything about her was delicious and delightful.

"What's the hurry, wait for me!" Screamed Ron, waking him from his reverie. He shook his head giving her more space, admonishing himself for pestering her like this. She seemed to notice it and turned her head in his direction. He sensed that she seemed sad and hopeful, but mostly confused, he looked at her for a few seconds before forcing his gaze elsewhere, not noticing the disappointed look that her face gained after this.

"Come on guys, what's the hurry?" Asked Fred, who seemed to be covering George for some reason, probably a trick for some unfortunate soul.

Surprisingly, it was Hermione who interrupted their charade before it had even started. "Hurry UP! We need to find a booth quickly, and then Ron and I need to go to find our prefect schedule with the Head boy and girl."

"Cor Blimey, Hermione we just got here and you want to work?" Moaned Ron, gaining a reproachful glare from the bushy haired witch, "It's your responsibility Ronald and you will not take it lightly." She seemed annoyed by his lack of response so Harry intervened again. "Ron, remember what we where talking about in the backyard? I guess this is the moment to start changing, don't you think?"

"But-

"COME ON! We'll never get a booth if you keep wasting time!" Screamed Hermione, making them cringe at the return of her bossy persona. "Let's go, I don't want to be on her bad side anymore..." Harry muttered trying to follow the now exasperated girl to the cubicle she was looking for at the moment.

Reaching up to grab her shoulder he began to ask her, "Did you find anything Herm…" only to feel the words die on his throat when he spotted what she was seeing, there in the compartment was a girl with a wand placed behind her ear, radish earrings, a necklace made of Butterbeer Bottle caps, reading what seemed to be a newspaper… upside down. Of course all this extravagance wasn't what paralyzed him and Hermione, it was the fact that the girl _was_ Luna, a clothed version of her at least. "Luna?"

She slowly put down the newspaper at the sound of his voice, smiling brightly at him, and then frowning a little at Hermione, who seemed to be communicating with her. It wasn't for too long, but it seemed that a conversation passed between the two, making Luna lose her extravagance with every new second as a tiny scowl grew on her face.

"I understand you better than you believe Hermione, I don't like it, but I respect you. I hope that you find what you truly need and not what you think you do quickly." The blond nodded her head, her decision made, than looked directly at the flabbergasted black haired teen, smiling beautifully. "Hello Harry, it's nice to see you."

"LUNA! Wha-what are you doing here?" Asked Harry, ignoring that Hermione has cast a _Silencio _on the Booth to give them a few minutes of privacy. Stopping a curious bunch of Weasley that immediately recognized the girl from entering the compartment. The twins deciding to ignore the developing drama, in favor of finding a booth for themselves.

Luna frowned a little. "I'm reading Harry, I thought that was obvious."

Harry sighed, "No, not that. What are you doing here on the train?"

Luna blinked. "I am being transported Harry, that's the largest reason for why we embark a train."

Harry sighed again, now a little frustrated himself. "Luna please, I don't what you in the middle of my problems for my sake."

The girl smiled, "And why would I be?"

Harry's voice was just a bit louder than normal as he stopped himself from full out shouting, "Because you are a Nymph. You're supposed to be in the forest, not here where all my problems can effect you!"

Luna giggled. "I am honoured that you constantly compare me with a Nymph Harry. But I am very much Human."

This took Harry by surprise. "But, in the forest, you." He stumbled over his words.

"I never told you that I was one, you just assumed that I was because I never corrected your assumption. In fact, I even told you a few clues of my origins when I told you about my mother and specially my father. Nymphs can only be female Harry, but I guess you where more preoccupied by my exposed bits to truly listen."

The now deflated the boy took seat in front of her, looking at her like it was the first time in his life, he conceded his defeat, recognizing that he was too enamored of her at that moment to think straight. Sighing, slumped further in his seat and commented without really thinking. "You look odd with clothes." He shut his eyes and groaned, covering his face with one hand as his words sunk in. "I'm sorry, that came out wrong. Please forgive me, I didn't wanted to offend you. It's that… I'm accustomed to seeing you unclothed-not that you don't look good with them on! but… well I… Damn..." He trailed off lamely.

Luna gave a small smile, now more relaxed. "I understand Harry. I will explain it to you when the time it's right, but right now Ginevra and Ronald are too curious to talk freely." Almost as if on cue, the Weasleys entered the Booth, Ginny immediately attaching herself beside Luna. Greeting her happily, if a little stiffly, she constantly looked at Harry and then at the blond girl, trying to decipher what happened in those two minutes of private conversation, truly confused with how they seemed so close when they weren't supposed to even know each and other.

Ron seemed not only confused, but uncomfortable with her presence, but his tirade only lasted a little while, with him being pressured by Hermione to hurry up. "Take care of out luggage Harry." The redhead asked before being dragged by the impatient girl. Harry sighed preparing himself to put the baggage on his place when Luna inquired something. "Why are you doing it like that?"

Dropping Ron's Gear he looked over at her, confused by her question, before she touched her wand on her ear, signaling him that he could use magic to shrink them or levitate them. He frowned having forgotten his wand for a moment. "Right, magic." He took out said tool and enchanted the Luggage to levitate to their new position, easily completing the task.

Finishing quickly he looked in the direction of both girls, seeing them muttering at each other. He resigned himself to wait a little more to have a conversation with the blond so he sat and put himself in the most comfortable position he could, trying to rest his tired mind. Sadly the opening of the compartment door put his mind on alert, knowing that like every year before this, a nasty encounter between Malfoy and himself had occurred. Not that he wanted to confront the ponce, but he seemed to like the annoying happenstances as much as he disliked them, it was like a tradition.

He lowered his guard seeing that it was Neville at the door, looking tired and nervous "Hello Harry, do you mind if I sit here? Everywhere else is occupied. I ran into Hermione and Ron while I was trying to find a compartment and they pointed me here. Thanks to my grandmother I could catch the train before it left." He seemed to have some problems with his baggage so Harry prompted him to come inside. Neville, hearing Harry's words and seeing the nodding heads from both girls, even if one made him a little uncomfortable, smiled in relief and took his time to put the luggage in the right position with the help of Harry. Who again forgot he could use magic, making Luna sigh and Ginny giggle. Now comfortable, the two males sat and talked animatedly at each other, with Neville showing what his Grand-uncle Algie gave him. He took out what seemed to be a grey pottered cactus, one that seemed to have boils instead of spines.

"Neville what IS that?" Asked Harry, now aware that Jäger was curious about the plant, even if he himself wasn't. This question seemed to catch the attention of both girls who where looking at the plant with some restrained interest. Neville seemed delighted of the attention the cactus was giving him, even if he was still a little nervous. "This is a _Mimbulus mimbletonia, _it's a rare plant that's origins are surmised to be in Assyria."

Luna seemed interested, but like him she was showing signs of distress about the plant for some reason. "Why is it moving?" asked Ginny, being the most curious about it of the group. "Oh, it is not prescient, but it has some great defenses to prevent herbivores from damaging it, if you prod it the plant would shoot Stinksap from every boil." Sadly, he nudged the plant while he was explaining this, showing what the plant could do to the rest of them in a perfect, but nasty, show that ended up bathing them all with Stinksap.

It took the collaboration of all four of them to clean the booth, all the while listening to the constants apologies from of Neville. Not a second after they got done cleaning every inch of the compartment with cleaning charms the door was opened violently, startling them all, and annoying Harry because due to his overtaxed sense of hearing he couldn't sense them coming. (Sadly those fabulous senses seemed overwhelmed by the sound of the steel wheels over the rails and the collective aroma that the carpet and the seats had collected with the years) In the door was a cross looking Ron exclaiming something about idiots and ferrets, with Hermione admonishing him for his insults right behind him.

"Can you believe that they made those two Prefects of all people?" Asked Ron taking seat between his sister and Luna. Ignoring the presence of the blonde girl in his tirade. Harry narrowed his eyes at the two, a sudden burst of possessiveness of the girl and how she shifted guiltily at his side. Jäger was angry again and for the first time Harry was about to snap at the redhead when Hermione intervened. "I know that they aren't the best choice, but we can't do anything to change the fact that Draco and Pansy are the Slytherin Prefects." She sat at Harry's side, surprising him with that decision, making him forget about his rising indignation.

Ginny huffed, "Knowing them, they will try to make life impossible for us." Neville nodded, believing the same thing. Ronald answered defiantly, "Let's them try, for every point and detention that they will give us, I'll double it"

"Oh no you don't, you can't just take points as you please. Prefects aren't supposed to abuse their power to fulfill their foolish desires." Admonished Hermione. Incensing the boy, who now seemed surprised. Sadly he wasn't the type to keep his mouth shut and snippily answered back. "So are we supposed to just let him and Pansy do what they want?"

"Of course not Ronald don't be obtuse, they are _Prefects_, they have an image to uphold. They can't ignore it and just do as they please." Reasoned the girl, sadly for her no one on the booth seemed to reciprocate her feelings.

"As if that has ever stopped them from doing what they want, wake up Hermione! It's Malfoy we're talking about!" Said Ron cheekily, almost expecting her to concede defeat on the matter.

She huffed "Honestly Ronald-

Harry, seeing where this was going, and frankly not in the mood for one of their fights, quickly cut her off. "You have to admit it Hermione, Ron has a point."

That immediately put a stop to the bickering; Ginny gasped at the unusual occurrence, Luna for her part was seemingly too occupied with her newspaper to notice neither the event, nor the gaping redhead at her side. Neville seemed uncomfortable, and Hermione was flabbergasted.

Sighing at their reactions he added, "Think about it Hermione, when was Draco punished for breaking the rules aside from first year? During second year he launched a serpent at me when he wasn't supposed to, he wasn't punished or reprimanded for it, he didn't lose points for putting other students at risk. No... All the attention was put on the fact that I could talk with the snake more than anything else. He called you a mudblood, and still does every chance he gets, and was rejoicing on the fact that the heir was going to kill a lot of people in front of everyone, even Dumbledore, and he wasn't reproached or deducted points for doing so. During third year he ignored the procedures with Buckbeak and look at what happened! Instead of punishment and correction for his behavior he got his father _to kill an innocent animal_ for his son foolishness. And don't even get me started on the Potter Stinks buttons-

"Harry." The voice of Luna woke him up from his ranting, making him notice how everybody was looking at him worriedly. Shocked at how outspoken he was being. He looked at the floor, trying to hide his embarrassment over losing his control like that. "Sorry." He mumbled, trying to look as tiny as he could and failing.

Hermione tried to say something, but one look at the direction of Luna told her that it wasn't a very good idea. Specially if she was going to try and retake her original notion. "Hermione, you need to admit that Malfoy has got it his way most of the time thanks that his father holding a powerful position as part of the table of governors and is a close friend of the minister himself, he expected the position because it was assured for him, he will try his best to deny you any chance to breath freely because he has been raised to think that he can do as he pleases." '_Or you don't remember who his Head of house is? The man that takes points for even breathing too hard, for speaking without consent even when he asked that student a question, _for being an insufferable knows it all_._' Luna continued through the link, putting emphasis on her last point to rive home her point.

'_But-_

'_Now it's not the time to talk about it__. Y__ou need to admit that you are NOT always on the right, Ronald could have been more moderate in his words and tone, __but you don't need to disagree just because of how he worded his argument. Y__ou are his friend, NOT his mother, who shall I remind you, he is not really close __to__ lately! You and I need to talk Hermione, the sooner the better." _In matter of seconds, the blond delivered her intentions to the brunette witch, making clear that this wasn't a debate, but an order as the alpha. So Hermione looked at the window and nodded to herself, ignoring Ronald and Neville reactions to the ongoing oddity.

"Sadly this conversation has come to and temporary end, I need to attend to the call of nature-

Hermione interrupted her immediately, not really wanting to hear the rest, even if it was an excuse. "We understand Luna, no need to be specific, and I will accompany you if you don't mind of course."

"On the contrary, the more the merrier and-

"Shoo, shoo we _really_ don't want to listen to the details Luna." Ginny spoke up, surprising both girls with the fact that she wasn't accompanying them to the loo. Hermione faked disinterest and Luna was already parting from the booth. Both pretending to not notice how Ginny was looking them with barely contained suspicion.

On the way there Luna's demeanor changed, the act of being Looney dropped in favor of an assertive girl. "Now Hermione I can understand your doubts. I myself was attracted to Ronald before all of this happened. He, like me, knows how it is to feel alone even when you are surrounded by people, even family." She looked at the girl directly in the eyes before adding. "But all of that is now in the past now. Now I have Harry. I Like him, not because my cat love him dearly, but because in that short week we both grew to know each and other, to trust and care for the other. In that tiny amount of time he showed me more kindness than all my Ravenclaw peers have shown me in all the years i've attended Hogwarts."

The blond girl looked at the surprisingly clean floor of the unnaturally huge compartment that was enchanted to be the girl's loo. "I believe that I am falling for him, for who he is, not for what he is, or what he has done or represented…"

"Luna please-

"You are conflicted. You have this idolized idea of how the world should be; a world where everybody has their own shape, a contour that fit perfectly into a spot that you had designed from your very childhood. I will not reproach you." She clutched Hermione's when she said this, trying not be too invasive. "I lack the experience to tell you if that is wrong or not. I can't tell you if you are committing a mistake or not, as I am learning too, the symbiosis only added another living being to my soul, not more knowledgeable, or made me wiser than before. Valiant? Maybe, less lonely, definitely! I like Harry, and I know that you like him too. I can feel it, but then I can also sense your fears on the matter. So I will leave it to you, Hermione, after all. This is your life, not mine."

The blond witch blinked a couple of times before she made her decision final. "You are set on this path so I will leave it be. You can pursue a relationship with Ronald and I will accept it. If you can find with he has the same quality of love that Harry shared with us at that moment. Than I will halt any attempt by Harry or myself to make you come back with us."

"I don't want to lose them Luna."

"You won't. I know that the possibility of a break up could cause a feeble friendship to end, but if you are true friends, even this happening shouldn't break five years of friendship." Luna assured the girl, seeing that the girl was too afraid of even contemplating the mere possibility.

"You don't know Ron, he h-

"Ronald is stronger than that. I want to believe that he is better than that. He is like a windmill, he could do the job easily, but without the wind to make him work he will be just another structure occupying space without a purpose."

Hermione seemed surprised by her words, in fact she was gaping, so Luna just added one last comment. "I Know that you feel that this situation was induced because of your raging hormones, and in part, it could be true, but both of us are too gifted to accept such a false assumption. Hormones are not an entity that will force you to do something, they might affect your emotions and judgment, but in the end it is you who made the decision. To blame your body for your actions is not only immature, but it shows emotional distress and lack of confidence."

Hermione nodded, understanding the point. She had much more control than that! She wasn't the first girl crossing this transition and definitely wouldn't be the last either. She wasn't an uneducated dunderhead, she was Hermione Jane Granger, daughter of Henrietta and Faust Granger! She would survive this with as much dignity as possible.

Sadly, Luna interrupted her inner pep talk. "I am worried about Ginny, she knows, or at least suspects that something is amiss. Harry treating me familiarly has confused her greatly, I can bet that she is now interrogating him on when he knew me and why he hasn't told them about it. And more important, why I haven't said anything."

The older witch frowned, thinking seriously on the matter. "None on the Weasley family knows of our escapades. I knocked her with the sleeping charm every time I got out of the bed. Ronald would sleep through an earthquake. I studied the wards thoroughly as to not trip any of the alarms on the principal room. In fact, they don't have anything too complicated on the house at the moment, just simple alarms for intruders that are not added to the matrix. Restricted access to the floo network, pretty basic stuff that is easy to manage."

Luna nodded, "It's a basic matrix for a ward, but effective. We are in times of peace, no need to overdo the wards and consume the magic on the quartz unnecessarily, in fact, I believe it's because of this matrix that they constantly modify the burrow, the quartz are probably absorbing some of the magic that sustain the structure just to recharge some of the energy it had lost on the ward. To make a more complicated matrix they would need to construct another one entirely from scratch just to prevent the complete absorption of the magic on the Burrow."

Hermione affirmed, truly interested on the conversation now that it was not focused on her complicated love life. "And they don't have the money to buy a more complicate one, so the basic will be for now. I wonder what they do to prevent this from happening on a more complicated scheme like The Ministry Building or Hogwarts itself! The Arithmancy and rune work involved had to be fascinating."

**XxX**

"**O**kay Potter, spill it. When did you become such a terrific friend of Luna's." The redheaded girl demanded while looking him directly in his eyes, noticing his barely concealed anxiety.

Ron and Neville seemed interested too, so they were wisely silent, trying to prevent the glaring Harry was receiving now. Frustrated, Harry decided to tell a half-truth. "I met her at the forest behind the Burrow, she was chasing fairies and-

The snort from Ronald interrupted him immediately. "What's so funny?" He barely concealed the edge in his voice, but so far only Ginny seemed to notice it. Ron for his part answered "Fairies mate? I have lived there all my life and have never seen a single one." His sister who was about to protest shut her mouth instantly at that comment, slowly nodding her head at the validity. "I hate to say this, I really do, but he's right!"

"HEY!"

Harry sighed, knowing that he needed reveal a little more about it. "It may be because it was pretty far away from the burrow." This of course stopped the bickering between the brother and sister, now more curious about it. "How far?" Ginny asked after a second of silence.

"It took me about fifteen minutes to reach it." Silence was the only response to that statement, at least till Ronald slew it with a confused. "And when did you did this? I don't remember a moment that we weren't together or under the scrutiny of our mother." He gestured between Ginny and himself when he said the last few words.

Harry murmured the answer. Sadly Ginny seemed to have good ears, "After midnight? Why were you walking at the forest at that hour?" Ron was about to ask the same thing, when snapped back, "I wanted to think OKAY? I was tired of being watched like a little kid that needs instruction on how to even breathe! I chose the forest because if I stayed in the backyard where someone could see me I would have the exact same problem, I just needed space!"

This time the silence was much larger than before, with both redheads trying unsuccessfully to think of a way to defend their mother after what they experienced this summer. Neville was just uncomfortable about everything.

"I'm sorry… it's just..."

"No, Harry. You'r-"

"Ginny she is your mother, and deserves respect."

"Harry stop, we understand it, more than you think..." The serious tone Ron used took everyone in the compartment by surprise, especially when he was looking so intently at the ceiling. The lack of chastising from the female Weasley expressed volumes of her opinion on the matter. After a third uncomfortable silence Neville finally asked "So how many fairies was she chasing?"

Harry smiled, "A lot of them, enough to illuminate the entire patch of forest."

"So the two of you were alone every night, with a bunch of Fairies?" Asked Ginny, looking curious about it.

Harry nodded, "At first it was really uncomfortable, but after a few minutes we just talked and talked and after I knew, I was trying to meet with her every night at the nook, just to talk more."

Ron frowned, and Ginny nodded, now understanding why they seemed so close even if that saddened her a little. "I hope you don't hurt her Harry, I will Hex you if you do." The girl said seriously.

He nodded, affirming with the same intensity. Ron for his part clapped his hands, breaking the ambiance between the two. "That's why you where so tired during the day!" Seeing Harry nod again was the only answer he needed. "Cor Blimey, you really are a lucky bastard."

"RONALD!"

"WHAT! It's true, you know what would have happened to him if mother found him."

"Oh... I thought... nevermind. Even if it sickens me to admit it, Ron's right… again."

"HEY!"

"Shut up you big baby, I am telling the truth, and the fact that you did say the right thing two times in the same hour it's pretty much unbelievable, but Harry he IS right. It wouldn't have been pretty. Last year the twins tried to sneak away and got caught up, they made us swear not to tell any soul what exactly happened to them, but it was... humiliating."

'_Let's her try anything, I will fry her!_' Was the immediate answer of Jäger. The first comment he'd made all day. Harry had to agree though. Not that she would abuse him or her sons, but something was telling him that she knew a few methods that would get her the same, if not better results. '_Like the bat-bogey hex,_' after all Ginny had to have learned it from somewhere, and he doubted that the twins would teach her how to defend herself against them and their jokes.

The opening of the door and the girls entering took his attention away, especially when he was worried that something happened between them. A quick look into the eyes of Luna told him that everything was fine. And the smile from Hermione brightened his day. He never noticed when Ginny gave him a sad but thoughtful look.

Neville seemed to notice her expression, but something was eating him the entire time, especially after he got his eyes on Luna's newspaper. He suddenly realized they either didn't care or didn't know. Since it was possibly the latter Neville spoke up. "Guys, I'm sorry if I am overstepping but, why aren't you concerned with what the Prophet is saying about Harry and Dumbledore?"

This seemed to catch everyone's attention, more because they were all completely unaware of what exactly he was talking about thanks to certain overbearing mother. (And of course other circumstances) Hermione sensed unknown knowledge and pounced. "What are you talking about?"

Taken aback by the question but not entirely surprised, he told them about what the ministry had done. The Prophet's actions and the public reaction, it was very understandable to everyone when Harry exploded in an indignant "WHAT?"

"I can't believe she hid something so important from us, especially from Harry! What was she expecting? That it was something sporadic? This is bad… really bad." Was Hermione's reaction. Ron, like Harry, seemed annoyed. He was openly glaring at the ceiling, even more upset with his mother. Ginny was supporting a speechless Luna, who seemed to freeze for a minute before she looked directly at Hermione. The older girl herself paled and started shaking at her stare.

At first Ginny thought that she was glaring Hermione for something. But Hermione was now ashen faced for some reason. She was confused and frankly scared of what was happening, so many questions, and so few answers. Harry for his part seemed stricken too, as if a message had passed between the three of them.

Harry was, on the contrary, furious at the situation. Especially with the fact that the ministry had decided to add a professor that would probably make his life even harder than it already was at the moment. But he was angrier at being in the spotlight again. The look on Luna and Hermione's faces was enough for him to understand the severity of the situation. Now the attention of the entire Magical world was upon him. Hiding the fact that they weren't entirely human anymore has just gotten more difficult than ever.

The rest of the trip was spent in silence. Each teen engrossed in their own thoughts.

**To Be Continued...**


	8. Chapter 8

**Thanks to My Beta A. Blackwell, without her this would certainly be less enjoyable.**

**This story is an H/L/Hr, so have patience they (especially the girls) aren't going to love the idea instantly, and frankly I don't believe that this is going to be Harem, the Smut will come with time, but it's not and never will be more important than the plot itself.**

**H**arry was accustomed to the harsh glares, the whispering, the pointing and the barely concealed laughter**.** He had been at the receiving end of all that for almost his entire life, and after the newsNeville dropped in the train compartment, he wasn't really surprised that he was in that situationagain. Sadly forthem it was going to be different this time, he wasn't going to tolerate it any more. He wasn't the small, friendless kid nor was the attention seeker the press making him out to be, much less a delusional boy with dreams of glory. If they wanted to play deaf, then let them. He would be sure to enjoy the looks on their faces when the shit hit the fan.

He was tired of being the punching bag, the laughing stock of those too stupid to see the truth for themselves**.** In fact the moment Neville delivered that news something inside of him seemed to crack, he had suffered enough for them. And that was absolutely going to end this year. He might not like Ancient runes or Arithmancy like Luna and Hermione did, and he wasn't good with the plants like Neville. (Even if he knew how to maintain one thanks to the Dursleys.) Potions was a failure waiting to happen, and Hermione was more versed at transfiguration than him, hell even Ron was slightly better at charms than him, not much but that said a lot.

The only subject where he had applied himself to his fullest has been Defense Against the Dark Arts and only that. But that needed to change immediately if he was supposed to survive the second coming of Voldemort, and much more if he wanted to protect his friends and surrogate family. (He might be annoyed at Molly, but that didn't change the fact that he liked her none the less.)

He looked at his side, noticing that Luna was walking alongside him, protecting his left side, at his right was Hermione who seemed annoyed at something, probably that encounter with Cho and Marietta that she still hasn't toldhim about. It happened after she and Luna accompanied Ginny to the Loo, something happened and some words where exchanged, what words exactly he wasn't sure but the dark look that Marietta was sending Luna was something that he took notice immediately. "You don't need to worry about me Harry; I can take care of myself really well." Where the words of the blond, he nodded not doubting her for minute even if his instincts where screaming at him to protect her at all cost.

Hermione huffed and he took notice of the fact that she was slowingher pace to be now alongside Ronald and Ginny, he still was confused about her, he could feel that she was attracted to him, he could smell it and see it, but she was constantly trying to evade what he wanted to believe where subtle signs, making him doubt of himself frequently.

He was jealous of Ron, who seemed to love the fact that for once Hermione seemed more close to him than she normally was and he didn't blame him for it, he might not like it, but only a fool wouldbe apprehensiveof a girl like Hermione wanting to get closer.

Again the voice of Luna interrupted him, "Give her time to clear her feelings Harry, forcing her to do as you want isn't the solution, us girls aren't toys that you can claim as your own. We are people too." She was murmuring but it was clear enough for him, he lowered his head in shame, "I know, but I can't avoid it, it feel**s** awful." He whispered back she nodded, understanding him.

"Like I told her, I still have too much to learn about this, especially about us, we aren't exactly what we could call a normal relationship**.** I want to stop her because she is hurting you, but what will we gain for forcing her to be with us? Nothing but resentment and disdain, no girl likes to be forced and I am sure you know how it feels to be in that situation**. **We might have a cat inside Harry, but we aren't animals, we were raised as humans and even if the instincts are now increased we are still intellectual beings, never forget that."

"I'll try."

"No, don't try Harry, believe that you can**.**The basis to a successful life is how much you trust in yourself and what you can do, and If you can't believe in yourself, then believe in us, your friends, that have faith in in you."

He smiled, for the first time in a while and nodded now reaching his destination. His eyes widened some in surprise as he found that he could see something that he couldn't see before. Luna took his hand, squeezing reassuringly, "These are Tresthals Harry."

"Hey mate, what are you looking at?" Asked Ron, noticing how Luna was holding Harry's hand, and would shrug at it. Ginny for the most part just looked away not having the courage to acknowledge it at the moment. Neville just looked at Ginny trying to get the bravery to reassure her without success, Hermione was flabbergasted, now fully understanding the words of Luna against Marietta.

'_You are quick to judge, fear and even hate the unknown. You may not admit it, but you are afraid of discovering what lurks out there away from the security knowledge offers you.'_

She couldn't see them, but her ears and nose are certainly aware that 'something' was there, a competitor that could be lethal if she was stupid enough to not take it seriously. She was frowning too at how those words where resounding on her head, they where directed at Marietta even when Luna was looking directly at Cho, she wasn't stupid; she knew that those words where really directed at her.

She just was trying to ignore it, of how close to home it was.

She couldn't deny that she wanted Harry, the fact that she and Luna got defensive at Cho**'s** presence was proof enough for her to acknowledge it, but desire and love where not the same thing**.** She liked Harry but she also liked Ronald, both where pretty special to her, they held a place in her life that was yet to be defined, she didn't wanted to commit herself to Harry just to discover later that she loved Ronald and only liked Harry.

She needed to know because she truly hated the unknown, she liked to have all the facts, she liked to have control over her life. All her life the unknown could have cost her dearly, so be it if was a stranger offering candy or a giant monster out for her blood. What Harry offered was a life full of unknown and she wasn't sure if she would like that, Ronald was more constant, more safe, closer to what she could control and predict. But she wasn't sure if that was what she truly wanted.

'_I hope you find what you truly need, and not what you think you do.'_

Hermione sighed, doubting wasn't going to get her anywhere. She needed to know and she was going to get answers regardless. Making what she hoped was the right decision, she took Ron's hand and squeezed. The boy was startled, his face showed uncertainty mixed with a little hope. She smiled and squeezed a little more, he squeezed back and she was relieved for it. Even if she was not feeling what she wanted to feel, she needed to get answers and this was the only way she could get them.

Renata wasn't pleased and a part inside of her wasn't too happy either, she was treating Ron as an experiment, a way of finding if what she feels for him was friendship or not**. S**he just hoped that this wasn't the beginning of the end of their bond.

Ignoring the stares of Harry and Luna she took him to the carriage, they needed some time alone to talk about this.

Ginny smiled at her brother; truly happy for him**. **It seemed that this day wasn't as horrible as she was thinking, of course she was a bit disappointed. She couldn't deny that she found Harry attractive, and the idea of having a relationship with him was appealing; but the interest that her mother had showed in the possibility of a relationship between the two was something she didn't liked at all. Her brothers where pretty aware of her bad temper, she hated being overestimated or treated like a little girl that doesn't know what she is doing.

Her mother seemed to be committing that same mistake with her; she didn't need help to get Harry to acknowledge her. She had her own methods to make him notice her whether is was as a friend or as a lover, whatever happen first. So far it seemed that it was going to be as a friend, he seemed to have developed feelings for Luna and she wasn't blind to not notice how he looked at Hermione.

In fact, what confused her was that sometimes Luna seemed to look at Hermione with a confused but very specific look. The same could be said of Hermione, but she seemed to be mistaken with her if the two teenagers mounting the carriage meant something. She doubted that something more would happen there, after all Hermione was a girl that loved to be in control of everything so she probably was only talking with him, to think otherwise is proof that you don't know the girl at all.

She sighed, she didn't liked to lose even before she had a chance, but Luna was a sweet girl. She probably wouldn't let Harry go no matter what, hell even she wouldn't let him go that easily. But the blonde was a close friend if not the only one she had of her own age, she accompanied her when her brothers where too occupied to notice her. She helped her recover from the damage Tom's diary had done, she might have grown closer to Hermione over the years but Luna was already there when the brown haired witch wasn't.

Nodding, hoping that Hermione will forgive her for entering so soon in the carriage, she signalled Neville to follow her, just to give Harry and Luna a little time for themselves too. She was patient enough to prod Luna for information later, and if things didn't work between the two, well she would see how things developed from there.

Luna sighed, squeezing Harry's hand, trying to reassure him that everything was going to be all right. Something that seemed pretty hard to do when he looked so crestfallen, she tried to let go of his hand to find that he didn't want to, so she said, "I can't evade the fact that part of me feels dejected Harry. I am here at your side but you are only thinking of her, a month ago I would have felt devastated that the boy I like seems to need another woman at his side."

"Luna I,"

"Harry I too feel attracted to her, and that confuses and scares me greatly. I have never before felt an attraction to my gender, if this was so, I would have attached myself to Ginny. I feel that I need her too and it hurts me seeing her with him. You are not alone with these feelings Harry, you need to know what you truly want, and I want to be at your side when you find it regardless of the result. If she is part of our future she will be welcomed and loved, it's preferable to have her happy with us than feeling as trapped as she feels right now."

"But it hurt**s **so much, I hate it."

"I know I hate it too, but this is not about us, it's about her. You can't force her to love us Harry, she like me wasn't attracted or expecting to be attracted to someone of her own gender or sharing her loved one; let her resolve and take a decision by herself. If you like her with the same intensity as how I like you, then you will try to make her happy whether she is with you or not."

He gave her a hug that seemed to surprise the bystanders, who promptly begun to spread as many rumours as possible**. **The fact that Luna wasn't popular or believed to be sane was a confirmation to many that Harry was in fact insane. But she didn't pay too much attention to that; she was enjoying his closeness, having not been this close in what she considered a long time. He slowly separated from her, looking at her with desire and love that made her feel weak in her knees. "Let's go," He said, taking her hand and guiding her to the carriage, ignoring the harsh glares and the whispering of the others students.

Once inside, he saw that Hermione was again not looking him the eyes, he ignored it smiling at their intertwined hands, "Congratulations," He said, taking both of them by surprise. "Thanks Mate," Answered Ronald, smiling brightly at the approval. He wasn't the most brilliant bloke but even he was aware of the tension between his two friends. He seemed to notice Luna and smiled again, "I guess we aren't the only ones eh?"

Luna looked at Harry and he nodded, "I guess not" The blond girl seemed to radiate happiness at him admitting they were together. Ginny smiled sadly and congratulated them, Hermione for her part seemed shocked for a minute, almost looking betrayed when she recoiled a little, then looking back at Luna startled, quickly composing herself, then smiling, "Yeah, it's great,"

Sadly for her, the feeling of dejection didn't seem to disappear even if she was happy that she and Ron where an item now. She ignored it, now focused on something more important now that they where all away from annoying onlookers.

"This isn't going to be an easy year," She assumed, surprisingly it was Ron the first to answer her.

"When has been easy?"

Ginny nodded, "It hasn't, and this one wouldn't be the exception to that rule, in fact this could be our more menacing year ever, the ministry**'s** doings are making it more difficult than before."

Harry snarled surprising everyone, "They are a bunch of cowards and incompetents, if they don't want to believe that Voldemort is back, then let them pretend all they want, it wouldn't change the fact that he is out there becoming stronger with every minute spent."

"But we need to do something!" Neville spoke up, receiving a firm look from the scarred adolescents, "And we will, we are going to prepare as much as we can, we are not children any more. I refuse to be treated as a child by those that don't have the bollocks to accept the truth. I plan to study and learn as much as I can, it might not be enough to stop Voldemort, but then I will not make it more easier for him, I will fight him to the end of my own life!"

Luna smiled, ignoring the silence that those words had delivered to the carriage, "I will follow you to the end of the world Harry I will do my best."

That seemed to wake up Hermione, who nodded and added, "You certainly won't be alone on this." she seemed to want to add something else but doubted herself, Ronald for his part added, "It will not be easy but I guess it never has been." Neville smiled reassured that he wasn't the only one thinking that. "I believe in you Harry, and you can bet that I will do my best to help you on this."

Ginny, encouraged by those words finally agreed, "Let them think that we are children, they will never take us seriously and that will be their downfall. They will try to undermine us, but together we can conquer any obstacle!"

"Together we will," Alleged Luna.

Harry now more reassured and feeling a bit guilty about omitting this fact, finally asked, "Had anyone noticed that Hagrid is missing?"

**XxX**

**H**ermione glanced worriedly at her friends, she understood them, she really did, but she wasn't the kind of person to just judge another by mere suspicions. And if she was, well, she doubted that Harry and she wouldn't be as close as they where now.

But this time she wasn't so sure about it, something about that woman screamed danger, her instincts were screaming at her to be careful. And she was taking them seriously for one simple reason, the most poisonous animals tend to display themselves in the most brilliant colours, and this woman was certainly displaying bright ones.

"I don't like this, the fact that the ministry has sent a lackey to watch over us could just mean more problems to come." Said Ron, hisdistaste barely concealed. Harry nodded and she wanted to object, but the growl of Renata made her doubt herself again. Sighing she nodded, gaining a smile from Ronald that was supposed to make her insides twist as before just to find that it wasn't there. She looked at Harry, noticing that he was looking at the Ravenclaw table.

Luna was being accosted by a bunch of girls, probably trying to pry information off her and failing if the several look**s** of frustration and disappointment were to say anything. She pretended to ignore the twist of protectiveness inside of her convinced that it was caused by Renata.

"She is going to be fine." She tried to reassure him feeling oddly forgotten, he looked at her, this time it was he who evaded her eyes. "I know." after that he just looked at the direction of Luna again then at his plate now ending his portion. She ended up looking at her own plate, trying to ignore how much it had hurt her.

**XxX**

**H**e was struggling not to, but Finnegan was bent at pissing him off. He was trying to ignore him really, it was almost as if the boy wanted a confrontation, at first it got him by surprise but he just ignored it from the point he began to rant about him being a liar, not really trying to defend or change the opinion of the boy about him.

But the moment Finnegan grasped his arm he almost lost it, in fact he quickly got a hold of his rage, and found his hand grasping Finnegan's throat. The boy seemed frozen in surprise, he was well know for never falling to violence, but he wasn't that boy any more. He wasn't taking anyone's shit, much less from Finnegan. He could see that Neville and Ron where surprised but that they had taken a defensive position at his side putting Dean on hold, seeing that to get him he had to pass over those two first.

"I don't care what your mommy thinks of me, I don't care if you got scolded or not. You can say whatever you want about me I truly don't care. If you want to believe I am barking mad, then so be it, because that's up to you, but don't ever think that I will stand by idly if you try to impose yourself by force again, because I will not hesitate to crush you."

He shoved the boy, surprised by how easy it was, Finnegan soon scampered throwing dirty looks at his direction following closely by Dean who was more afraid than anything else. He was sure that by tomorrow this was going to be common knowledge so he dismissed it, it was better if they think he was mad.

"Are you OK mate?" Asked Ron worriedly, he nodded feeling tired for some reason. "I am tired of being the punching bag Ron if they want to take this to the next level they are in for a surprise."

Ron nodded followed closely by Neville, "We got your back mate you're not alone in this." Ron wasn't entirely sure about this, but he wasn't going to commit another mistake again, not like last year.

"I might not be of much help, but I promised to try my best!" Added Neville, Harry looking at them with a firm stare finally reached to a conclusion. "Then we are going to train hard to make ourselves better**,** faster**, **and stronger. Ron contact the Twins, we need a place to practice without being interrupted."

Nodding and smiling the redhead walked in the direction of his brothers, fully convinced that he wasn't going to fail Harry any more.

**XxX**

"**Y**ou've got to be kidding me!" Harry shoved the parchment on the table fully convinced that his glare was going to put it on fire, it was as if the schedule was made just to piss him off.

"This is horrible, our first class is Potions?" Muttered Ronald, now fully understanding why Harry had reacted like that. Hermione opened her mouth trying to say something but then again, something seemed to click on her head and she decided not to, now looking slightly frustrated with herself.

Finally she conceded, "It's not going to be easy, and it's seems that DADA is next to Potions so at least we are going to find how competent this new professor could be."

The snort from Ron didn't take her by surprise this time. "It's the professor the ministry has assigned to the School Hermione, just look at her, does she look like a fighter?"

Hermione frowned, "Fighting hasnothing to do with DADA Ronald, it's about competence. Professor Lupin didn't look like a warrior when we encountered him, and he was one if not the most competent teacher we ever had." She decided to not mention the fiasco with Barty Crouch Jr.

"The fake mad eye was a good teacher too." Sadly Neville seemed to be the one to make that mistake, she was expecting an explosion from Harry but he seemed thoughtful about it. "Harry?" She asked truly surprised to see that he didn't react as she was expecting, after all he seemed more volatile lately.

"He had to be, or he would have raised suspicion. Sadly, I don't know how it was for other years, but our year schedule seemed focused on the three unforgivables. Especially the Imperious, but he didn't teach us how to properly fight, he just tested us constantly on our fears and limitations. Then the Tri-wizard happened and well, I lost focus on what he was teaching at all." He was going to add more when Harry noticed the look on Hermione. "What is-"

"Hello Harry," The voice of Cho Chang took him by surprise; especially because she had caught him unaware of her approaching, he cursed himself now beginning to understand that in a crowded environment his senses weren't as effective as in they where on the Burrow.

"_**You need to understand more about your new body, you can't expect to have an increase in your senses and get accustomed to them immediately.**_" Harry nodded, ignoring how curious his friends were of this, especially Hermione who seemed to be trying to control herself for some reason**.** Ron was about to add something when he stopped him immediately, "Sure, I don't see any problem with it," He was trying to get Cho away from Hermione, both girls seemed to have a dislike for the other and he was in the middle of them.

"Harry what about Luna?" Asked Hermione in what seemed likea surprised tone, he looked at her direction ignoring Cho's reaction to that fact. "I am not going to cheat on her Hermione I am just going to talk to Cho."

"You have something with Lovegood? So the rumours are true?" She seemed surprised and crestfallen, and for the first time he seemed to notice how much the girl smelled of attraction.

'_**She seems to be a good choice for a mate!**_'

'_I am not going to cheat on Luna wit__h every girl I __find__ out there Jäger, she is open to the idea of Hermione but that's it._' He berated, not that he didn't like the idea of shagging every girl out there, but that wasn't going to make his life easier, much less make Luna happy for being an unfaithful git.

He looked at Cho, she certainly she was beautiful, probably even more than she was last year, but what he used to feel for her wasn't there any more, "Yes it is, we are a couple now is this what you wanted to talk about?"

She quickly denied it. "Oh no, it's just that, I thought, that you and I could have a chance now, you know… but it seems that I got here too late." She was frowning, he could feel, see and almost taste her at the moment. He sighed, getting closer to her and putting a hand over her left shoulder trying to be comforting even when he wasn't sure of what he was doing.

"I feel honoured, and under other circumstances I would gladly accept a chance to explore a relationship with you, but I am with Luna and I can't fail her like that. Doing so would be wrong of me, and I want to believe that I am better than that."

She seemed stricken but she nodded, "I am sorry if I am inconveniencing you, I…" He quickly interrupted her, "No, please no, you are NOT an inconvenience believe me, never believe that, if you want we can be friends I would like that."

He didn't even noticed that his hand was now over her cheek, erasing the trails that a lonely tear was creating, he was feeling awful for doing this to her. "If you ever need a friend to confide in, I will be there, you only need to ask." She nodded, trying to control how hard her heart was beating against her chest. "I will, take care of her Harry."

She parted leaving him there, pensive about the possibilities, knowing how much he had changed just by that moment; he looked at her direction noticing that everyone was looking at him, especially the girls; he looked one last time in the direction of Cho just to find her talking in low tones with Marietta who was obviously glaring in his direction. He glared back, taking her by surprise for a few moments before she launched a glare full of loathing.

He just ignored her, now giving her a perfect view of his back now fully aware of the barely concealed look of wondering in the face of his friends, but more importantly in the face of a blond headed girl. He smiled brightly seeing her promptly doing the same. "Hello there,"

**XxX**

**H**arry was fuming, Snape seemed to find too much pleasure in what he did; really did he know how close was he to have his life mauled away? If it wasn't for Neville he would have killed the bastard without caring of revealing his nature, he knew that Neville was his preferred objective.He normally tried to evade the lad in this particular class, but he wasn't that coward, Neville needed a friend and well, Finnegan wasn't really close to him any more, nor was Hermione going to be his partner now that she was an item with Ronald.

In fact he didn't wantto, but he was trying to ignore her, it was simply too much to ask him to like it. He might accept it, but not really like it, so he was with Neville and it was a bloody nightmare. At least he was now entering the DADA classroom leaving that outlandish torture behind him.

He sat on his accustomed spot in DADA slowly getting the surprise of his life at seeing the new decoration. He liked cats, (Even if he was a Dog person,) he really did, but what he saw gave him a shiver that was managing to shake is entire core.

At his side sat Hermione, careful to take his hand understanding his predicamen., "I know it's creepy, especially with our new condition but you need to pick your battles well. You can't continue like this any more Harry, constantly losing your composure, not all the battles can be conquered with brute force. You told us that you wanted to change, then prove it by not letting you anger dictate your actions."

Ron sat close to them, and Neville got his back all showing as much unity as they could at the moment, he nodded to Ron who seemed to nod to Neville and so on.

**XxX **

**R**on was nervous, almost terrified, that class had been a disaster after another and it only got worst when that toad began to taunt and degrade Harry constantly. Trying to make him lose control, surprisingly he maintained said control even if his face was cold and full of barely contained anger.

They got away from that fiasco as fast as they could, everyone following a silent Harry without asking. He was guiding them to one of the many unused classrooms of the third floor, in fact he seemed to be trying to find the same room where fluffy used to be in their first year. Once there he guarded the door, letting them all enter before he closed it. "Hermione I need to know how to close this door, especially how to prevent anyone from hearing what we are going to discuss here."

The brown haired girl promptly obeyed explaining quickly, "I can use the _Colloportus_ but I have not practised it yet, it might not be as secure, and… I don't know if _Silencio_ is appropriate. I might need to research more suitable charms." She ended the procedure just to find Harry looking at her firmly. "Can you teach us Hermione? It's pretty obvious that that woman isn't going to teach us anything of value. In fact she is trying to sabotage and decide what we can learn or not."

She gasped, "Harry I, I don't know if,"

He took her shoulders forcing her to look at him at the eyes, "Hermione if someone can take us to the next level, that's you, we can't sit idly when they are trying to make us sitting ducks; this is a situation of life or death, Hermione. And if someone can shape us to be great wizards it's you."

"I could try,"

"That's all I can ask of you." He let go of her, ignoring how she was breathing heavily by his closeness.He concentrated his attention on Ronald who was slowly losing patience by how he was handling his girlfriend but one look at his eyes deflated all his rage knowing that this was truly serious.

"Ron, I need the twins to find a secure place to practice, I guess this can be our base if we like. But it's too exposed to truly be the one, if they know of such a place then extract the information of them by any way possible, use bribery if necessary."

The red headed boy looked startled for a minute before nodding feeling a little weird but liking it when he had such a mission to prove himself. "I will get an answer before the curfew." Harry affirmed smiling a little before looking to Neville, "Neville I don't want to offend you, but I don't know you enough to ask you something, a mistake that I intend to correct this moment, come let's talk."

**XxX**

**T**hat night at dinner students where gossiping about how Umbridge was obviously trying to discredit him the entire time and he wasn't brave enough to contradict her. Disgusted, the group promptly left the place with Harry only managing to say goodbye to Luna on the stairs, passing the precise message when he was hugging her.

She nodded and left for the tower leaving the group there looking at each and other for a few minutes before they had to go to their common room, fully aware that they had to do a lot of homework. Or at least they where intending to when they found the twins waiting for them.

"Oh look there brother of mine, our test subject has finally showed himself." Said George, Harry only identifying him by his smell of chemicals.

"Certainly it has, but what's makes me more curious is the fact that he is doing it willingly." That one was Fred, who smelled of gunpowder and dirt.

"Not that we mind, we where thinking of testing the Fainting Fancies on the first years but grown ups will get us better outcomes."

"True, true but I still wonder if,"

"Cut the crap out, are you going to cooperate or not?" Yelled Ronald, fully exasperated by their act, not that Harry blamed him, he too was stressed.

"Tut, tut, you need to control that Ikle Ronniekins." Taunted Fred, closely followed by George, "Or you might find yourself pretty unpopular with the ladies."

Harry knowing that Ron was about to scream interceded in Hermione's behalf, "Stop it, I will taste it myself if you stop harassing your brother, we need this agreement for tomorrow."

That seemed to make them more serious, "We heard about the toad and what she had tried to do, but what you are asking it's pretty dangerous." Said George seriously for the first time, Fred nodded before he looked at their surroundings noticing that they had several onlookers on them.

"Come with us Ronniekins we need to show you our part of the deal," both twins whispered.

"Are you sure that this is secure?"

"Probably, it's depends, we certainly know a lot about the castle but we can't compromise our most secure hideouts, but we know a certain secret that can be of help to you and the route to get there is going to be memorized by poor Ronniekins here."

"Believe us, by the end of the night, he will know the way better than anyone present."

**XxX**

**R**on was certainly nervous; his brothers where renowned for backstabbing him several times just to get a few laughs at his reactions, but both of them wer**e** being too serious to his liking, "Why are you truly doing this?" He asked, not really knowing why he was so bold lately, maybe it was the fact that for once he seemed to be doing the right things.

George looked at him for over his shoulder, "Don't misunderstand us Ronniekins, this is a golden opportunity to us."

Fred affirmed now more careful of not being overheard by anyone. "Umbridge began her career at Hogwarts as the most disliked teacher in recent history. That presents us with the chance to double the price of our merchandise."

George nodded, "Students only need a certain outlay of stress before they begin to take their frustrations out on the most unprotected or weak in the social rank. This woman is doing what she wants to frustrate the student population, even if she doesn't seemed aware of it."

"And who'sabetter target that the 'Lunatic who lived and his band' but if we observe carefully Harry isn't going to let them do too much. And him answering back will make the tensions escalate to dangerous levels, leaving him more vulnerable to those that want to discredit him." Fred finally took a look at his brother before he reached a portrait of a bowl of fruits.

"Like our Dear Umbridge here," George finished before he caressed the pear, surprising his little brother with the fact that said image seemed to be trying to move away from the finger. Finally after a few seconds the portrait opened inviting Ronald to what he defined was heaven itself.

"Welcome Ikle Ronniekins to Hogwarts kitchen."

"Here you will find the ones that know this castle better than us!"

"Of course, you need to prevent dear Hermione from reaching this place or we are never going to stop hearing her lecture about elf rights."

Ron nodded, truly understanding how his friend (and now girlfriend,) would react at what he was seeing now (that Hogwarts had loads of House elves happily working,). Sadly for him and his brothers, if they had been more careful, they could have noticed a silent figure hiding in the shadows of the kitchen trying her best to not be seen at all.

Said figure smiled to herself, now getting something on Potter and his friends that could give her what she truly desired. She only needed to move accordingly, and seeing Ronald she certainly got a plan in her head that would secure what she wanted, she only needed to be patient.

**TBC **


	9. Chapter 9

**Betaed by Blackwell.**

**L**una sighed, now looking at her scattered belongings; she was accustomed to this scene, really. But Persephone, her beloved feline wasn't truly habituated to the sight if her roars were to judge her state.

"_**This is intolerable, inadmissible, UNFORGIVABLE!**_" Roared Persephone in indignation, pacing back and forth in her head, metaphorically of course but still too distracting to ignore. Luna for her part was just trying to control herself coming soon to the conclusion that it was almost impossible with the cat in such state.

'Getting upset over it will never stop them from doing it again; a reaction would only encourage them, so I give them nothing, eventually they just renounce.'

"_**But this is NOT the same! They destroyed your possessions, desecrated your books and marked your bed with obscenities, just because you are Harry's lover.**_"

Luna sighed reaching for some of her shattered belongings, 'And what do you truly think I should do? Kill them for being immature? Get revenge and renew and increase the loathing they had against me? You know that getting more attention at this stage will only complicate our lives." She began to cast _Reparo _and_ Scourgify _to recover and clean her books and garments.

'_**I understand the need of concealment, but you can't take this any more, what will happen if **_**HE**_** comes back? Will you stand his abuse again?**_ '

The blond stopped completely, just thinking over what Persephone had said. 'He wouldn't dare to come close to me again, not after what I did to him. But McLaggen isn't someone to be preoccupied, I can deal with him in a more- _harsh_ manner that I did before. After all he was the example I put on display to those that were thinking that I was an easy prey to their twisted desires.' Luna sighed, feeling that Persephone had used that git as a perfect example of what she had to do.

'You are aware that doing something against them will make our lives more complicated right?' Even when she was saying that, her hands were moving accordingly to her plans, slowly creating a protective ward on her property and assigned bed. Persephone snarled at that, "_**You aren't the same girl, you are not alone any more, and if you don't do it Harry and certainly Jäger will do something about it and it will not be pretty**__._"

Luna nodded, getting the same conclusion that her feisty feline had come across, so she did what she knew best. She laid traps after traps on her belongings just to prevent this from happening again, after all she had some unusual knowledge of magical traps for 'inexistent' creatures. All a re-design of an old and forgotten method to capture Pixies and Red caps without damaging the captive, (After all you had to capture them alive to put then later in your dungeon, [a common practice when wards to repel Muggles were non existent.]) She smiled, truly admiring the first layer of her multi-layered protective ward; brute force will only make them stronger and probably make the assailants lose precious time to do what they did without being caught, and breaking the first layer will only get them the same treatment that the males receive when they try to get in the female dormitories. That being said a loud claxon will show and even if that was prevented, she was going to put a series of nasty hexes just to spice things up a little, The more layers they broke, the more nasty the hexes would get, magical creatures used to give up after two or three layers but human are really known for how persistent or idiotic they could be. So in the end seven layers remained, deciding to use an formulae that was arithmetically correct to sustain all the matrix.

Instead of using one of her quartz, she decided to use the flow of magic that permeated Hogwarts itself, knowing that a better battery than that was almost impossible. Of course she added a 'hole' for the elves to get what they wanted or needed, after all it was unfair to punish them too for doing their job.

She was aware that an intruder could recognise this hole and use their own elves to do their job, but only a fool would call an outsider elf on a castle full of them, knowing that they were really, REALLY possessive of their territory among them.

Ending her warding, she smiled now recovering her last 'repairable' possessions to put then inside the trunk, she knew that she was sacrificing the loony persona but something told her that she had to lose the act at some point. Not for her but for Harry's sake, he needed a strong companion at his side and she wasn't going to let others defy that intention.

With a movement of her wand the clothes that were beyond the point of salvation disappeared, she knew that half of her belongings were missing at the moment with only a few things destroyed in the process. The books, shoes and undies could be replaced easily; after all she wasn't that stupid to leave her more precious possessions were anyone could take them away. '_**I bet that Harry will find you irresistible if you tell him you are going commando.**_'

"Maybe he could take us like he did that night."

'_**Oh I hope he does,**_'

**XxX**

**H**arry was frustrated, it has been after all a really long week, full of problems, loads of homework and hidden reunions, but most of all he was slowly getting pretty tired of the attempts of the new teacher (IF you could call her that) to discredit him. Sadly his lack of response was getting harder to maintain, he wanted to shout, he truly wanted to scream at her what he was really thinking but for the first time Jäger was the voice of reason.

"_**You can't lose your temperament against this **_**thing**_**, if you get punished you can't practice with Hermione as you are doing lately, don't let a minor pest separate you from your pack like she wants to.**_" Was the usual response from him. Of course he was aware of what Umbridge was trying to do, but as the week keept passing he was getting more and more angry at how people seemed to forget about what happened that day, especially about Cedric, who was classified as an unfortunate accident by the ugly toad. (A name that Ron used when he wanted to talk about the teacher lately, he had to admit that he certainly hit a spot with the woman.)

In fact to his surprise Ron confessed that he was going to the try-outs, with the intention to be the new Gryffindor Keeper. Both had been practising with the purpose to get some of the anxiety out of them, something that the redhead was really grateful for. In the end Ron got in the team leaving them more relaxed than before, of course, getting a weekend to finally catch up to their homework could do wonders to relief anyone tension, but sadly the feeling wasn't destined to last. The first sign to an upcoming disaster was when he decided to send a letter to Sirius, trying to find information of Hagrid's whereabouts and of course Umbridge. This time he could barely smell the upcoming of Cho who seemed to be about to send a letter of her own, just to be rudely interrupted by Filch who accused him of sending an order of Dungbombs.

Of course he decided to ignore him, more preoccupied with the fact that he lately was failing to detect his surrounding like he used to do at the Burrow, something he needed to train desperately (Especially when he was in an environment like the owlery full of really pungent odours.) Then later that day Slytherins taunts at Ron put him so nervous that he failed completely at the Quidditch practice, something that Hermione tried to solve by getting him on their first 'date,' making him cringe at the mere idea of the two having time just for themselves.

Of course that later or more precisely, the night of that dreadful day only got his temperament in a much worse state thanks to Percy of all people. It seemed that the git had sent a letter to his brother explaining to him that the ministry had some plans with the school, and was urging Ron to severe any ties with him. Followed with an surprising encounter with Sirius' head in the common room fires, (not knowing that the fireplace could be used like that, never seeing it being used with that intention.) Here he found that the ministry was more stupid that what he thought, an army for the love of his beloved broom, who in the hell would really think that a bunch of kids would be trained to overthrown a government. Especially when the environment was so divided by factions that seemed to support the ministry over Dumbledore itself, sadly he tried to protect Sirius from doing something rash and dangerous and the conversation ended in a disaster.

Sadly at the beginning of the new week things didn't get better, in fact as Percy has prevented, the ministry had done a move to undermine Dumbledore's power by getting Umbridge as an High inquisitor, if the daily prophet was to be believed, (And probably this time it was probably a genuine article.) A position created mostly with that idea on mind. It didn't escape his attention that the one that immediately defended Dumbledore was quickly undermined with another article alleging her of being close to a subversive Goblin group.

Of course that getting a confirmation of the ministry intentions wasn't what they truly wanted. The woman almost had the power to decide what you could learn in the school. Hell if thing's were how she wanted it she would decide WHO is WORTHY to be here, the day seemed to have begun with a really surly tone.

Potions was by the other hand a complete surprise; it seemed that the study group was slowly (Too slow for his taste, but is better than none) getting results with him scoring a 'P' in his essay. Not the best qualification, but the look on Snape's face told him that the git wasn't expecting his work to be like that at all. Of course, if the look on Hermione was indicating something when she looked at his essay was that she was disappointed and probably wasn't seeing this note in the same light as he was doing.

Of course his heart twisted a little when Ron of all people seemed to have gained an 'A', she surely seemed content with his success, the redhead was mostly speechless, and probably would be for a while.

Of course the fact that under his 'A' was a note saying 'Barely,' that informed him that it was a simple matter of few points that he got away from the 'P' and that it was probably Hermione's last minute correction that saved him from receiving it. Harry sighed, Hermione didn't examine his essay because he didn't let her at all; he couldn't support the idea of being alone with her without feeling the need to claim her. It was not what he liked, he would never let Jäger get the control of his body, he will never force Hermione to do what HE wanted just to satisfy his own ego, nor would he claim ALL the girls that crossed his path just because he could. If he let the cat take control he wouldn't be Harry anymore, he would be Jäger, a beast that killed and took what he wanted just because he could and had the power to back it up.

It simply was too close to what Riddle is to his liking.

After potions Hermione was telling him how he had to apply himself on his studies, something that he had to agreed to, after all 'P' wasn't going to save him or his friends from Voldemort.

"I know that's why we are practising for, Hermione."

"Well I surely can't complain, that's more than what I was hoping for." Said Ron, getting a flabbergasted look from Hermione that seemed was going to rant about him being too conformist when she seemed again to drawn back as if stricken by something that only she could hear. Harry immediately knew that it was probably Renata and immediately become preoccupied.

"It's OK Ha-" Luna was suddenly interrupted when the trio shouted in surprise at her sudden appearance, Ron screaming "BLOODY HELL," letting his essay and book free, Hermione screeching and Harry simply jumped almost half his height on the air. Luna for her part was rendered speechless at their reaction, mostly because she was trying in vane of controlling the laugher that was trying to scape.

It was Ron who broke the ice, "Blimey Luna, you scared the mickey out of us!" He accused, Harry nodded now noticing that he never had sensed her at all, even when he was more aware of his surroundings than ever, (Or at least wanted to believe he was.) Hermione was still breathing hard trying to control her heart rate with a breathing exercise.

Luna smiled brightly looking at Harry at his eyes, "I am sorry, I just saw the three of you walking to the great Hall and thought that it would be nice to eat with you lot." Ron nodded not seeing the problem with that, after all he had been studying and practising with the girl for an entire week and she so far didn't seem as loony as she was before. Hermione seemed uncomfortable but he was thinking that she was maybe jealous of not being the one helping Harry as she had done all this years. (Not knowing how close to the mark he was with that assumption.)

Hermione smiled accepting her immediately if a little nervous of her presence, and Harry of course was enthralled with the idea. "Of course you can Luna!"

She smiled, now reaching for his hand and getting close to him to whisper, "Don't fuss too much over Hermione Harry, Renata is almost as her conscience, it has her standards but had the vantage of seeing her from a third or second point of view so she tends to try to correct Hermione. She is not accustomed to hear her own voice chastising her for an error that she hasn't committed yet."

"I don't understand."

Luna smiled," I will explain it to you tonight Harry."

He nodded hoping that his fears of Renata gaining control of Hermione were false. He wouldn't forgive himself if Hermione ended being lost forever for Renata. Harry took Luna's hand and slowly were reaching for their accustomed spot on the table when Ron added, "I can't wait for Professor McGonagall to get an inspection." Hermione gasped in horror and Harry had to clean his ear to truly believe what he was hearing, Luna for her part was expecting the rest with a calm face.

"What?" Said Harry and Hermione together, staring at him.

"Umbridge won't know what hit her!" Finished the redhead slowly moving in the direction of the table, the rest following him with a little smile on their faces, it was a good prospect to think over and over.

Of course that while they were serving themselves Luna decided to add something, "I believe that she will increase her attack on you Harry, so far she hasn't found what she really wants. And you are not reacting by a direct approach, so she will try to undermine those close to you to get a response."

Ron gulped and Hermione nodded truly believing that Luna had a point there, "We have to control ourselves and don't fall for her trap," Said Hermione looking at Harry, knowing how much he was struggling to not lose his control with the woman.

Luna for her part looked directly at Hermione, then at Ron, "She will try to attack when it will surely get a reaction of you two. Hermione you need to resist the temptation to refute what she calls 'appropriate knowledge', this is a teacher that you don't really need to impress. Laying low will get you the opportunity to made a more profound investigation at the Library, if you feel your anger get the better of you, listen to your '_conscience_' to remind you what's at stake here."

Hermione nodded, even if she didn't agree completely, Ron for her part was looking between the two girls, seeing for the first time how close the two seemed to be. As well as seeing how much power Luna seemed to have over the brown haired witch.

He looked at Luna who now seemed focused on him, "Ron is our weakest link-" The redhead seemed about to lose his temper when a jab from Hermione interrupted him, he looked at his girlfriend about to unleash his temper when Luna added the magical world, "Quidditch,"

He looked now at Luna with his most devoted face, "Wait say that to me again, I wasn't paying much attention." He was looking at her with a shine on his eyes and an eager face. She surely had his entire focus at the moment. Almost the same look that a dog gave you when you showed him a big juicy T-bone.

"She will try to attack you at Quidditch, in fact both of you if my speculations about her are really close to her persona, you are rather- passionate about the sport, and you will only need a few taunts from the Slytherins to explode and do something that will get you in trouble. In that moment she will strike and do what she has been waiting to do, so be careful." She looked at Ron, but her hand putting a little of pressure on Harry's was not perceived by the redhead. She could be truly speaking at Ron, but that speech was really directed at the black headed teen.

After that they separated to their respective classes, both Ron and Harry finding that Umbridge seemed to take her new task really serious. Being her first victim the batty Professor Trelawney, the woman didn't stand over the pressure and she seemed almost desperate to prove her value in front of the Inquisitor.

Has Luna suspected Umbridge tried to take her intentions on Hermione and Ron in her class The jabs were really focused on them and their capacity, especially how misguided they seemed thanks to the 'poor' quality of the teachers that had befallen on the institution in the past years. Singing praises about Quirrel and looking at Harry especially who seemed about to add something if it wasn't for Ron of all people that constantly Jabbed at him.

Hermione for her part seemed stricken by what Renata seemed to say, as if she was being chastised so she barely lost any control over the matter, in the end it was simply another meaningless class of 'revolutionary teaching methods'. In the end the only effect that she had over them has to increase their devotion to the study group.

"We need to ask the elves for a new place to train tonight!" whispered Harry to his redheaded friend before he put his attention on his Charm essay. Ron nodded and Hermione seemed annoyed at their decision of hiding where they were getting the information. She tried to pry just to stop, sigh and continue her writing.

Ron was almost in ecstasy at the idea of being in the kitchen again, in fact he was almost fidgeting with unreleased emotion. Harry seeing a chance to speak with Hermione alone finally conceded. "Hey Mate, why don't you go and find the information we need?" Ron shouted his affirmation, closed his books and as if he had learned to haste himself, suddenly disappeared in the direction of the portrait. Hermione seemed annoyed that he didn't wait for her again and was about to pursue him when Harry said. "Hermione we need to talk,"

She seemed afraid but he needed her to know this, "it's about Renata…" This surely got her attention, "Harry I-"He immediately interrupted her, "No, no, Luna explained it to me, but I need to tell you this or my conscience will never leave me alone. I- I need you to know that you can count on me for anything."

Hermione nodded, not trusting her voice at the moment. Harry seemed to wait for a few seconds before he turned his attention on his essay, she focused on her own work, not really putting too much heart on it, truly trying to control herself and what she truly wanted to say.

**XxX**

"**D**ipsy is not really sure about this sir." Said the really nervous elf, Ron for his part wasn't easily dissuaded, "Common, only a little, just this tiny head I promise!"

The female was surely nervous; she had never been in this kind of situation before, "But sir, this was never done before, what would the others think?"

Ron huffed really frustrated by how the tiny creature seemed fixated on not doing what he really wished she was doing, "then lick it at least, If you just taste it, you will surely change your mind." He said putting the equipment more close to the female, this of course seemed to put more nervous the girly elf, "SIR, but that's is so-"

"Oh for heavens sake's I just want you to help me with the soup, I asked you to add a head of Garlic, it will change the flavour for the best, here just take this spoon take a little and sip for yourself, at least tell me that what you think of my soup." The elf looked chastised and depressed, surely taking the spoon and tasting the Garlic Chicken soup. (One if not the only recipe that his mother had showed him when he was a child.)

The elf took the spoon and tasted the brewage, making him wait in anticipation, "It is good, but it needs a little more of ginger," approved the creature, Ron nodded truly believing that the spice would make the flavour more palatable.

"W-ell, well, well, who would think that I would find such a juicy gossip here on the kitchen," Spoke a new voice startling the red head enough to throw the spices on the floor, "Bloody Hell,"

He looked at the spices for a minute before he directed his gaze at the intruder, finding to his surprise a girl. She had long black hair almost reaching her hips, she had a plane figure similar to Parvati, but if it was possible she had less chest than her, her face was showered with red spots as if she was too affected by the heat, her lips were snarling or at least trying to. Here eyes were a shade of golden the he never thought was possible, she wasn't gorgeous but neither was ugly, in fact he _never_ would recognise a Slytherin girl as gorgeous.

He took a defensive position, "What do YOU want," he was slowly reaching for his wand, ignoring that the elf behind him was looking at him almost angrily for how he was treating the girl, she looked at the direction of said teen and saw a signal to not do anything that compromised her plan on a subtle movement of her left hand when she put some of her hair behind her ear. "Who would have thought of this? A Weasley degrading himself, what a surprise." She tried to snarl again but she wasn't getting the expected result,

Ron immediately added, "Not as good as Malfoy at that yet, are you?" She opened her mouth trying to control how much her face was flushing in embarrassment, this certainly wasn't supposed to be like this, "That's not true!" she crossed her arms over her chest, looking at the ground as if she was a chastised little girl.

Ron arched an eyebrow at this, truly not expecting her to react like that, "What do you want?" he asked, still too nervous of her presence to notice the dirty look that the elf was giving him. (nor that the entire kitchen seemed focused on him at the moment,) the girl seemed to remember who she was talking to and straitened immediately portraying a confidence that she didn't seemed to have a few minutes before.

"If I were you, I would be more careful with my words Weasley, we don't want the entire castle to know your little secret here don't you?"

"You wouldn't dare,"

"Oh yes I would," She was looking him directly at his eyes, trying to make him know how much she was capable of.

Ron feeling a little intimidated asked, not truly feeling like he did moments before, "What do you want – err..."

"Greengrass, Daphne, Lady Greengrass for you."

"As if,"

"That's common courtesy you lowly dimwit!"

"Why should I treat you with any court-err- courtesy if you aren't treating me too well either,"

"Because I am a girl, I deserve respect!"

"No you don't"

"Yes I DO."

"NO YOU DON'T"

"Enough of this, what are you doing in MY kitchen Weasley, and what are you doing to Dipsy's soup!" She asked, closing the distant between them in a few strides, shaking her main finger at him, as if she was chastising a little boy. He open his mouth in disbelief at her actions, "Whoa there, I am not doing anything."

"Oh believe me from my position it was an outrage, I am about to jinx you if you don't explain your self," She was looking at him with defiance in her eyes, forgetting all her plans and letting her anger take the best of her.

Ron was confused and a little intimidated by how close she was to him, her golden eyes almost condemning him to the abyss, "I wasn't doing anything bad, I just asked her to let me cook the soup!" he responded sheepishly, truly nervous of what she would say of him, and sincerely waiting for the laughter to come.

Instead the girl looked at the direction of the elf who seemed more relaxed now that the girl was in control of the big redheaded male, "He is saying the truth missus, Dipsy wanted to make a asparagus soup, but he wanted Garlic Chicken soup… and took Dipsy's stove."

Daphne for her part frowned, she was hoping to find some nasty information on Potter to get what she wanted, but so far the redhead wasn't doing anything too condemning, she needed more than this, "What are you hoping to get here Weasley, trying to follow your brother's example by pranking the entire School?" She was taking a bet, and knew that the boy had a temper, if she made him angry enough he might say something that's he wasn't supposed to.

His response wasn't the one she was truly expecting, "NO, I would never commit a sin like that in my heaven!" His eyes seemed to open almost as much as those of Dipsy and almost all the elves, he said that so loud that even a tiny echo was resounding between the boiling water and others food. His ears were getting so red that they seemed about to explode, it was then that she couldn't contain her laughter any more.

Said reaction seemed to offend him; he huffed and slowly put the spoon in Dipsy tiny hands saying, "Please could you finish the soup for me? I don't feel like being here any more," The elf nodded looking between the boy and the laughing girl, Ron for his part just ignored her before he disappeared through the door in the direction of the Gryffindor Common room.

As soon as Ron was away, Dipsy suddenly said, "You are a meanie missus, you hurt his feelings," stopping Daphne on her tracks, which now seemed to notice the absence of the red head, she groaned now truly understanding what she had done. "I ruined it," She asked the little elf, who without shame nodded making the girl suddenly weak on her knees. "I need a seat," she said sitting immediately knowing that a seat would be there for her.

"That wasn't how you said it will go Missus," Said a tiny male behind her, his hand still raised on the air after materializing the seat. She looked at the new elf with a little of trepidation on her eyes, "I am sorry Dobby, it's just that I am too nervous, and never expected him to be cooking of all things, I thought that he was here to steal food or force the elves, but he was COOKING! Males don't do that."

A lot of shouts resounded on the kitchen making her realize where she was, "Human Males!" the shouts stopped immediately replaced with sounds of 'Oohs' truly understanding her point now, She sighed," What will I do now? I wasted my chance to get Potter"

Dobby shook his head, "Mister Potter sir is a great wizard, yous don't need to cheat to make him help you." Daphne laughed, "Please Dobby, you saw his friend's reaction to my house, do you truly think that he will be different?"

"Mister Harry Potter sir is a great Wizard he will listen to you if you tell him what's happening!"

"I can't Dobby! He is not the most popular bloke at the moment and Pansy and Malfoy would never condone my actions if I talk to him on a friendly basis, I need the redhead to stand me enough to get to Potter in time. "

Dipsy now adding the last spices to the soup finally said, "I still think this is a bad plan missus, if you speak with great wizard Dumbledore you could solve your problem!"

Dobby nodded, Daphne again sighed, "I CAN'T, he will try to talk with my father and I will pay for it, I need Potter and what he offers."

Dobby frowned, "Sir Harry Potter sir doesn't like to be cheated missus, and his Luna friend is with him now," Dipsy nodded then adding, "This is a bad idea missus,"

"THEN WHAT, I am DESPERATE now, I need a solution before September or I am commended. Potter is the only bloke that I expect to not abuse of what I will offer."

Dipsy sighed followed closely by Dobby, "Then you need to treat Ron sir better," and after saying that the elf put the spoon in front of the girl, "Here missus, taste it,"

She groaned, cursing loudly her rotten luck, "Why should I?"

Dipsy added, "The fellow likes food, to be close to him you need to like his food!" and with that the elf put the spoon on the girls mouth when she was about to protest, the girls eyes opened in surprise and grim expectation, truly expecting the beverage to be foul flavoured, to her surprise it wasn't, it needed a little of celery but apart from that it was really good.

"It needs celery," She added, slowly getting her hand on her magical bag, slowly introducing and taking the spice from it, "Here use this, its still fresh thanks to the stasis spell my contact put on them," the tiny elf smiled now using her magic to take and slowly put the spice in the soup.

Dobby for his part was slowly thinking of how to help the girl without cheating on the great wizard Harry Potter.

**XxX**

"**H**onestly Ron, it took you twenty minutes to get this old classroom? What were you doing?" Berated Hermione, making the boy more frustrated with each new second. When Luna intervened-

"Hermione, leave him alone, it is not easy to find a secure zone to train with Umbridge and the prefects here."

"Yes but,"

"Let it be Hermione, he did his best and found us a good place to train our charms." She smiled at Ron making him feel more appreciated and more comfortable than he was a few minutes before. Harry smiled now understanding much more of how Luna truly operated. Ginny and Neville for the other part were now focused on their transfiguration spell, deciding to recover some of the time they had lost waiting for Ron.

Harry took Hermione's hand preventing her from going to Ron who was slowly being talked to by Luna about Charms, "Let them Hermione, Ginny and Neville are practising Transfiguration, Luna and Ron are on Charms and we need to practice potions, I can't do it without you." She looked at him, them at the red head, and slowly nodded, "Well Harry, potions isn't that Hard to learn, the Key to potions is mostly –"

…

"Aren't you guys coming with us?" Asked Neville to Harry and Luna who were slowly whispering to each and other, Harry looked at his direction, "Go, Luna and I just want to chat for a while,"

Hermione asked a little stiffened, "You can do that while we take her to Ravenclaw tower Harry," Luna looked at her direction, raising an eyebrow at Hermione's tone, said girl looked defiantly before she receded now taking Ron's hand with her and leaving as if she were in a hurry. Ginny was looking at them suspiciously noticing Hermione's reaction, she sighed and waved in the direction of both teens, Neville for his part didn't noticed the tension in the air and with a smile waved to the couple and followed behind Ginny slowly establishing a conversation with her.

Luna immediately used her wand and said, "Colloportus," Now smiling at Harry too sweetly for his taste, he gulped smelling what she really wanted and suddenly nervous tried to talk with her. "You told me that you were going to explain Hermione's situation to me."

Luna nodded, still smiling at him, "Yes I did, and I will explain it, Hermione is still her, but her problem is that she has never before had heard herself chastising her for being too nagging or when she was imposing herself too much. Renata constantly reminds her that everyone its entittled to their opinions and that she shouldn't force her vision to others, Ronald by example."

"But isn't that a way to make Hermione do what Renata wants?"

"In a way, yes it could be seen as that, But Renata is way different to how Hermione is,"

"How so?" asked Harry truly curious.

Luna smiled at him, now reaching to his chest with her hands and caressing him over the fabric of his clothes, "Haven't you noticed that Jäger is the same with you but without the fears and restrictions? The same is with Renata and Persephone, by example my dear feline is more commandeering than I, she is rather forceful and possessive. Renata for her part doesn't have Hermione's needs to be accepted or to exceed. She is more confident of what she can do and constantly tells Hermione this, that she doesn't need to be accepted by others to truly stand, that she should focus more on herself and accept her faults, that still try to hide them under her intelligence and drive."

"You make her sound as if she is running away,"

"In a sense, she is, she is struggling to fit in this world almost desperately. She aspires to be accepted and respected by her doings and she is doing a good job at that. But is slowly letting her drive transform her in someone else." After this she looked directly at his eyes, maintaining his gaze, "She is slowly adapting even if she is not aware of it, the same conduct of the Purebloods, were only her version is the right and others are wrong and need to be corrected immediately."

"She is not like that,"

"Just look at how she tried to force her beliefs on the house elves. Yes she is rather forceful on her principles, her standards and rules are all for her because she believes that she had nothing else, that she lacks everything else; grace, beauty, and sex appeal. Renata is a slow reminder that she dose have those traits but again, Hermione has believed for so long that she lacks these traits that what Renata is doing is a slow and frustrating process." She closed the distance between the two and finally claimed his lips, then separated from him, "Don't think that you are fooling me Harry, I know that you are nervous, I myself am engulfed by them, but then again I desire you too."

***LEMON SCENE* **

"Luna I need you so much, you don't know how much I have dreamed of you lately," he said, slowly licking her ears and neck, hugging the stuffing out of her, she mewled, trying to open his shirt while he was doing this, "Oh you big Liar, I know that you have been dreaming of that night when you where such a beast with us."

He couldn't stand it any more, "Yes I KNOW, I am sorry but I can't prevent it, both of you were so sexy that I always am doubting myself if it wasn't for Jäger," She moaned at this, feeling Harry's teeth caressing her skin, menacing of another bit to claim her, she hissed in pleasure when he Dry humped her, "Harry please, take me I can't stand it any more,"

"But-"

"The only Butt I want mentioned is mine and I want your hands on it, we don't have too much time for ourselves; please just make love to me."

He nodded, slowly getting in the position to do so while Luna was easing his manhood outside his pants. She stroked three times before guiding him to her most intimate place and putting him on the right path, "Pump Harry, just do – oh, yes like that!" Harry didn't hesitate any more after her first words of permission. He was thrusting savagely in her, discovering that she was as excited as him, she moaned, hissed and much more at his effort, slowly getting more agitated with each new trust.

Harry for his part finally bit her shoulder; really close to her neck but in the same spot he has bitten her the first time slowly growling at her while he was pumping the life out of her, she mewled her body engulfed with his power, as if an electrical current was surrounding them and getting more intense with each new second. She gasped, trying to control her body but failed, feeling her spine almost explode in a wave of pleasure that seemed to flood her completely, her vagina constricted in pleasure, she had reached an orgasm as she never had before, one that didn't seemed to end while Harry was still trusting inside of her. After a few torturous seconds he loudly moaned her name and finally exploded inside of her, both almost roaring at the electrical current that was devouring their bodies with pleasure.

***LEMON END***

Both seemed to have lost conscience for a second before they dropped to the floor, truly worked up and exhausted by the experience, Luna was gasping for air, Harry imitating her perfectly, after a few minutes she finally said. "I think that the cats did something Harry, I can barely hear Persephone."

"Yeah, Jäger has been too silent lately too,"

"**That's probably because we aren't inside of you any more.**" Answered a new voice on the abandoned classroom, startling both teens into action, Harry was about to launch an attack just to stop on his track when he saw the enormous and translucent Lion in front on him.

Luna timidly asked, "Jäger?" at which the too similar to a Patronus entity nodded, "**Yes, I am the one who was named Jäger,**" behind him a most tiny but not less impressive lioness appeared, "**And I darling am Persephone**,"

"What why are you there?" Asked Harry completely flabbergasted, Luna took his hands, trying to calm him, "Remember Harry that they were supposed to complete their selves absorbing some of the magic at Hogwarts, they are just completed their 'physical' grown," The Lioness nodded, "**Yes we are still part of you, but right now we can survive separated for half an hour, the time will increase with time but right now, more than that could be lethal.**"

"**We just wanted to give you some privacy scar, you had been touchy lately and if I interrupted you would probably throw a fit,**"

"I would not," Denied the teen, only to feel Luna's hand over his cheek, "Yes you would have, but that's not the most important thing right now, I just wanted to tell you thank you for choosing me, so far as my life can stand, I will be at your side and will do anything to make you happy."

Harry tried in vain to hide his blush, but slowly nodded, engulfing her in a hug slowly smelling her aroma. "I know, I swe-" Luna's lips stopped him before he concluded that magical swearing, she slowly separated from him, looking him at his eyes with all the love she could feel, "Don't swear yet Harry, both of us still are waiting for our missing part."

"But she is with Ron,"

"For the moment, but a girl has he methods to know certain things,"

"Are you sure, then why is she with him and not with us?"

"She is still doubting herself, she will come with time, we need to have more patience and faith on her."

Jäger growled only to be shocked literally by Persephone, "**Don't interrupt their moment with your chauvinism, Hermione is a human being and needs to make her own decisions. Think more with your MAIN head that with the other one.**"

"**I didn't hear you complain of that Head the first-**"

Harry ignored the lovers spat and focused on Luna alone, "Care to repeat it?" Luna squealed in glee but promptly said, "I would love to, but we need to get to our beds or we are going to be in trouble."

"Oh Poo," Said Harry in mocking pain, using one of her phrases when she was in public, she smiled, kissing him on his lips, "indeed."

**XxX**

**H**ermione sighed, depressed by what she had discovered a few minutes ago. After the obvious dismissal of the group, she had tried to pretend that she wasn't jealous of what was about to happen and tried to focus herself on Ron, her actual boyfriend.

They both talked a little before she decided to take the relationship to the next level and without thinking too much, she kissed him, only to find two things, the first one was that even if he was really nervous, Ron was a good kisser, the second was that sadly even if he was good, he didn't make her knees go weak, or the floor shake or anything.

She still liked him, but it wasn't in a romantic sense, and that made her feel even more guilty of what she was doing. Renata seemed to chastise her for it, mostly because she was doing it to incite a reaction on Harry. She sighed now trying to reach the sleep she so needed, trying to ignore how much she wanted to dream of that night, while she was trying to convince herself that she could make this relationship work.

**XxX**

**A** few weeks passed after that day and Ronald was feeling a little more confident on his abilities, especially after the reaction of the students and teachers at his Garlic Chicken soup that day, he was most surprised to find the dish mostly unaltered aside of the addition of some Celery. He was expecting the elf to discard the soup and make the asparagus soup, he truly was amazed at how much people seemed to like his cooking.

To the point that every time that he wasn't studying or practising Quidditch, or with the study group, he was on the kitchen mostly ignoring Greengrass in the process.

Sadly that didn't last, the girl was ,if that was possible, more nagging than Hermione, only that instead of recurring to recite text after text of knowledge that he lacked as Hermione does, Greengrass stomped her foot, crossed her arms and pouted. He was surprised that the infamous 'Ice princess of Slytherin' could be this childish when she wasn't in public; Hell it even made him feel mature, and that says a lot.

"Are you done yet Weasley?" She asked impatiently. Ron huffed not knowing how he ended up in this kind of situation.

"You can't hurry perfection Greengrass,"

"You don't fool me redhead, you can believe that you are anything, but perfect? I don't think so."

Ron huffed about to refute her when he was hit with a spoon on his hand, "FOCUS, FOCUS, you can't let anything distract you from your objective Weasley sir, or yous food will not taste good."

Ron nodded but still adding, "But how can I concentrate on the beef if this annoying pest is trying to do what she can to distract me!" Dipsy again hit him with the spoon, "Focus, focus now," He finally put his entire attention to the piece of meat in front of him, slowly concentrating on frying it in his own juices with a bunch of garlic, butter and chopped onion.

Daphne huffed at being ignored for a piece of meat, and was about to say something when the look of Dipsy took her by surprise. She frowned now understanding that the tiny elf seemed to have taken the boy under her wing, truly liking the rare opportunity to teach her abilities to a willing apprentice.

In fact, she looked at the entire kitchen, now noticing how envied the female elves were,. Elves were really possessive of their abilities and most of all their work stations, you have to really offend an elf to make him not want at all to serve you or clean your place. But most of all, what they really treasured was the chance to prove that they were much more than just servants.

She knew more about elves than humans in fact, being raised among the elves of her own house when her mother passed away and her father cooled his heart completely. She was aware that elves adored their jobs, but that most at all because it was the porpoise of their life, what was giving a meaning to their existence, wanting to free an elf like Granger seemed focused to do was like freeing them from their lives. A servant didn't necessarily mean to be a slave, in the world people that took their job very seriously while serving others. It was a matter of pride, sadly she knew that the girl wasn't too far away from the truth either.

At Hogwarts and at her home elves were servants, and took pride in their jobs, but that wasn't necessarily a truth in all houses. In fact, the people that tend to forget that the servant is a living being mostly degraded them to slavery, sometimes not giving them what they truly deserved. And because they were sold as possessions of the house, they were treated as one instead of a living being, it's a sad truth of the world that if you could be sold and bought, you certainly weren't a living being any more but an object.

She was too aware of that reality to be frank.

"Earth to Greengrass,"

She snapped out of her reminiscences finding the red head too close to her comfort, she backed two steps, slowly trying to control her heart rate, "Watch it Weasley or I will hex you!"

"Wow, take it easy, I just was worried about you, you kind of spaced out there,.

"That's not true, I certainly don't space out that's unbecoming of a lady of my station."

Ron shrugged not in the mood to fight any more now that he was late to the reunion, "If you say so, your portion is on the table," And with that he parted leaving her huffing in indignation.

"I can't believe that he left like that, that uncultured redhead."

She looked at her plate, seeing a good portion of mashed potatoes, boiled green beans and a huge portion of beef. Her shoulders sagged a little at his offering, after all she hasn't say to anyone his secret or from who he was learning, or much less that some of the food that was served was prepared by him.

She sat on the table, not really in the mood to eat, but not wanting to insult Dipsy by not eating the food from her apprentice. She hated to admit it but the git has talent. She tried to ignore the pang at her chest while she was eating her ration; her resolution only endured her at the middle of the plate, now truly aware what was happening.

"What I am doing?" she was dejected, she really didn't want to do this but what other options did she have.

She sobbed, truly losing her composure for the first time in weeks, "I refuse to end like that, it's worth it, its worth-"And like she did before the redhead invaded her sanctuary, she released all the tension she had with only the elves as company.

**XxX**

"**O**k, that's it, we really need to help the others too, we can't let her ruin their lives," Said Hermione at the group now being more confident than ever now that she had almost a month of experience at teaching. Harry nodded truly convinced of being prepared for something else, Luna seemed pensive and Ginny was looking at them expectantly while Neville and Ron just waited for the decision.

Luna finally said, "We need a way to prevent possible betrayals; it could cost us dearly if we are captured by Umbridge and the ministry," Surprisingly it was Ginny who immediately responded, "I agree with Luna, if we invite more people some will probably open their mouths to brag or rat us out."

Hermione considered all of this, "We can ask people we trust and know, I doubt that too many will appear at the actual reunion, no offense Harry but you aren't the most popular bloke recently."

"None taken,"

"Well, apart from that, where will we get this reunion? At the school is too dangerous, you are aware that people are watching us more closely now that our grades are getting better, especially Ron." Added Neville smiling sheepishly at his friend.

"Oi"

Ginny immediately intervened, defending Neville to her surprise, "Oh shut up you big baby, even you know that your grades were a disaster waiting to happen."

Ron huffed, not really knowing that he was pouting, making them laugh a little at his antics, Hermione sat at his side, trying to comfort him. "There, there don't cry over spilled truths"

"Thanks - Oi"

Luna interrupted the playful banter, "returning to the point, we can reunite in the hog's head in Hogsmead this Saturday." Hermione seemed to think over it then nodded, followed closely by the others.

Harry finally took the final decision, "Then it's on the Hog's head, try to ask people, make it primordial the need of confidence, we are risking too much with this, after all we are not obeying at all what the ministry has decreed. So if the information falls in the wrong hands we need a alibi for the reunion…"

"Quidditch," Said Ron immediately.

Ginny was about to rant about it when Luna of all people added, "I Agreed, most of who we are going to invite are Quidditch players so it could be easily put on that light is we are discovered at the Hog's head."

"Then let's make the fear of the ministry real, we are going to make an army against him." Concluded Harry before he began to launch jinxes and hexes at the direction of Ginny and Hermione, ending the chit chat, and beginning the practice period with a mock battle, the cry of outrage from Hermione told him that he got her with the _Incarcerous_ spell. Sadly the jinx that barely touched his head told him that Ginny was expecting this and was answering with her trademark Bat bogey hex, he smiled proudly knowing that he was about to get a really intense workout.

**TBC**


	10. Chapter 10

**My main languish is Spanish, what I know of English is self taught, I depended greatly of my Beta to make this more bearable to the readers but sadly, she disappeared and doesn't seems interested on my work anymore, and my other beta it's too occupied with his life. **

**I had to BETA this myself, but that is laughable, and this chapter is probably full of mistakes and other mishaps that it isn't even funny, probably even to the extent of being unreadable, IF I can't find a beta to help willing to tolerate what I do, and my glaring mistakes, the story will continue, but sadly I must confess that if I don't find one, this will be probably my last chapter to update to the story itself, mostly because the effort consume my time (the little free time I get,) to the point that I have forgotten my Spanish stories just to continue this one. **

**A friend of mine can help me a little, but he has a job, and his own stories to make, so I might or not continue this with his help.**

**Asking forgiveness and excuses, **

**SWK. **

**S**ilence was prominent on the abandoned classroom, it was intentional and filled with tension and distress so copious that you could taste it; it was as if the air was being slowly charged with electricity and anger. And in a sense it was exactly what was happening.

The reunion at the Hog's head was a tactical disaster in the end, mostly because of instead of being a little gathering between academic and sport companions like they had planned it to be, it had been a huge congregation of curious and morbid children, more interested on the rumour mill than their studies.

Harry was expecting to see only Lee Jordan, Angelina and a plethora of players of Quidditch on the reunion, thanks to their close connection to those that they actually had invited. But sadly, the twins couldn't uphold the secret for too long against their girlfriends so they had to pass it, and then those passed it to others and so on, they had at some point so many people that the pub had to literally expand to make them all more confortable.

Then after taking away the girls from pestering the smiling pub owner over said charms, he proceeded to the noble and manly task of asking the misses what he should do, gaining a frown from Hermione and a sigh from Luna knowing immediately that he had done the wrong move but was too frustrated to even notice it nor the growl of frustration of Jäger. In the end Luna had to calm him enough to make him listen to reason, at least enough to safeguard their pretence of a study group.

He proceeded to explain it slowly to the public, but it was most than obvious that they weren't interested at all on the idea, Hermione added her version and the pro's of doing this 'small' (for her), sacrifice to get better qualifications, only to be almost silenced by the chorus of groans and other expressions of disappointment, even Ron of all people tried to make a point only to fail miserably at his intention, he sure has his heart on the right direction but his words weren't the most inspiring, and he or Harry weren't really well know for their good grades.

In the end most of the present decided that he needed to answer to their questions, not mattering how private or morbid they could be, they where mostly hoping for him to spit a bunch of flowery epistle against the government, only to find him trying to recruit them just for an study group. The major part of the people simply abandoned the pub not finding what they where hoping to find. Not knowing how close they were of really joining the first spark of an incoming revolution.

In the end only an amount of fifteen students were there to listen to his idea, most of them from the Gryffindor team, the rest being a mix of Hufflepuff and Ravenclaws. Most of them he noticed were more females than males.

He discussed with them that if they were truly interested on what he was offering then they had to wait for the signal for the reunion. They were reluctant but in the end most of them were convinced that this was something that they truly needed to know.

After that Harry was furious, mostly of how it seemed that it wasn't the most perfect idea of all, when Hogsmead reached it's end and they where back at Hogwarts, Harry was frustrated at how idiotic his peers were to not see that a mass of students like that will attract vultures and more dangerous creatures, like traitors and opportunists. He had discovered in ten minutes that at least eight in that gathering were displaying a huge amount of scorn for him, Marietta being the most noticeable of the group, the others being much more reserved making their facial expressions a little more harder to read, but the animosity was still palpable. In the end he prevailed on his search and knew immediately that the reunion will reach the ears of the toad and then the minister as soon as the Hogsmead ended.

And that was the reason for why he considered said event a failure, mostly because he couldn't control at all the tongues of those they had invited.

"What are we going to do if Umbridge tries to prevent us from forming any group at all?" He asked, finally vociferating what was truly eating him. Ron huffed not truly expressing his opinion thanks to the fear of being punched again by a scowling Hermione on his now tender ribs.

Luna sighed, closing her eyes for a while before she added, "She will probably try to prevent it from happening again, after all she had the power to create decrees and laws thanks to the Minister, she is out for your blood Harry, she barely contains her disdain for you and your friends, the fact that _you_ tried to create a group will only make her more belligerent towards you and by approximation us."

Hermione scoffed, not liking what the blond was saying, "But we have an alibi for what we were doing, and even if Harry lost some of his composure we still maintained the façade of a group of students concerned with our studies…"

"And Quidditch, don't forget the Quidditch!" Added Ron with enthusiasm at the mention of the game, the brown witch sighed before adding, "Yes, and that too."

Harry for his part was trying to find comfort in their words, even when something was telling him that they had in fact done a wrong approach to the problem.

Luna was still with her eyes closed, almost as if she was trying to concentrate on the possibilities. In the end she finally huffed after some minutes, opening her eyes and looking at Harry directly, "We need to sabotage Umbridge."

Ron seemed to perk up at the idea, Harry was interested but Hermione seemed aghast, "We can't do that!" She exclaimed loudly with a touch of indignation and without knowing using a little of her power and presence.

Harry looked at her, trying to contain his tongue and what Jäger wanted to express at that moment, Luna for another part seemed to straighten herself a little, almost as if she was reading to pounce, it was a surprise and maybe a relief to all when Ron of all people asked, "Why?"

Hermione huffed, now really frustrated, "Think about it, if someone begins to sabotage her, she will immediately lash out at Harry, she has the vantage over us, and is in fact probably expecting us to do exactly that."

"Then what do you suggest we should do then?" Asked a serious Harry, seeing at how Luna had calmed down after Hermione had explained herself, Hermione seemed unaware of what she had done and it was her reasoning what saved her of being pounced. The brown haired witch for her part, seemed to deflate at his inquiring, not truly knowing what to do. "I don't know, we are at a huge disadvantage here, and the enemy is waiting for our first and probably last mistake, we need to be careful now that she knows that we are trying to create a group, we need to predict what she will try to do to us and plan accordingly."

Luna sighed now back to her serene state, "Doing that means that we know how Dolores thinks and no one here can do that. So how do you suggest we can do it?" She seemed to be testing Hermione, who finally noticed the tension between the two of them, Harry being aware of what was about to happen decided to take a risk. "Ron, we need you to go to the kitchen immediately and find a secure room for tomorrow, try to find if there is a place where we can have our reunions without being found out."

The red head seemed to perk up at the idea and was about to ask Hermione to come with him, when he remembered the promise to his brothers about the kitchen, "No problem mate, See you Hermione." He tried to reach for her to kiss her but stopped immediately seeing how tense she was, he could not be the most brilliant bloke in the world, but even he could perceive the fight that was probably about to unleash here.

He looked at Harry who was now officially trapped between the two girls, and frowned in sympathy, giving a mock salute at him before parting at a slightly faster than normal pace, once he disappeared thought the door, Luna took out her wand and in a matter of seconds secured the room again.

Harry was trying to remain calm, knowing really well what was truly happening here, "Hermione we need to talk," was the serene words that come out of Luna, giving him shivers at how domineering she seemed to be even when she was apparently calm.

Hermione seemed fearful, but her gaze appeared to express defiance, both girls were trying to finally claim a spot on the pack, both being pretty domineering girls in their own sense, Luna was pacing back and forth, looking at Hermione who was in the same spot ready to react. "It seems that the time has come to reach a conclusion to our real problem, aren't we, Hermione?"

"I don't know what you are talking about," Hermione seemed to crouch a little, almost as if she was preparing herself to pound upon Luna who herself was still pacing back and forth in the small classroom. Harry tried to intervene immediately, only to be stopped by both girls, "Don't you dare!" they said in unison making him freeze at the spot, not truly wanting to be between them.

'_I should have gone with Ron_…'

'_**Yes you should have scar… but you need to get a grip of yourself, you aren't totally Human anymore, you have now heightened senses and instincts, even you could smell the tension between the two after you mated with Luna again.'**_

'_But why, I thought that Hermione was trying to find if she is in love with Ron?_'

'_**Don't be dense, you aren't a kid anymore, you truly need to begin to SEE what's is happening around you, Luna claimed you as her Alpha and it's slowly excluding Hermione of that role, Hermione for her part even if she do HAVE some submissive streaks, she still have a personality that's mainly dominant, and said personality isn't accepting what the blond has done, it had been subtle in all these days, but today Hermione crossed the line when she used her power to mark her territory.'**_

'_What territory are you talking about?_'

'_**I am beginning to wonder about your intelligence, really, you had four years beside her and still don't notice how much she is trying to impress you? You ALWAYS choose what Ron says over her, only to search for her when you need her, you always choose that annoying red head over her not mattering what, so be it at studies or what to do with your free time, she had to FIGHT all the time to demonstrate you that she is a great friend to you, that she is valuable for you by being the one that helps you and save your ass from the problems you manage to find, but now Luna is slowly occupying that role on your life and she feels displaced and threatened, and probably confused about Luna.' **_

'_Then we need to stop them right now!_'

'_**STOP IT, YOU IDIOT! And what will you accomplish with that? You will only make it worse by delaying something that should have happened a while ago if both of you had listened to US, if you claimed her like I told you to do before, Hermione would have been the Alpha and Luna a submissive Beta. BUT NO, you two HAD to deny what you were feeling and complicate things, leaving the position of Alpha empty to take so the blond had to change herself to be at that position, and to my surprise she quite liked it, and now isn't that willing to let Hermione take it from her, only one on them can be an Alpha and that's what they are about to find.'**_

Harry was aghast about what he was hearing, seeing them ready to pounce on each an other at any moment, he wanted to intervene immediately, but Jäger was slowly trying to take control of his body so he had to maintain his concentration at his best.

'_DAMN IT JÄGER THEY ARE ABOUT TO HURT EACH OTHER!_'

'_**IT'S NEED TO BE DONE!' **_

Almost as if his twitching was a signal, both girls transformed to their half beast form and launched themselves at the other, forgetting in the heat of the moment their wands to use their claws or their fangs, both expelling a different frequency and colour in their discharge of electricity, Luna's being of a profound magenta when Hermione was of a deep dark blue.

Both girls clashed, and in a matter of mere seconds, the fight reached it's end with Hermione on the floor truly exhausted, while Luna sat upon her biting her neck just on the same spot she had done that night, slowly injecting her a dose of her aura and power to conclude the ritual, making Renata slowly appear on the real world like Persephone and Jäger had done before.

The brown haired witch seemed to be on cloud nine with the whole process, twitching a little with every new burst of power, Harry for his part was aware of a new smell permeating the environment, musky and inviting, an aroma that he truly was beginning to like more and more.

He was about to join them when one of the barriers signalled that someone was coming, or more precisely an intruder that was not keyed like Ron was, he was about to dismiss it when another signal followed by two more finally made him take notice of the fact that someone was coming here. He cursed, now knowing that this was deliberate and not just some adventurous couple like had happened before.

He immediately cleaned the air of the musky essence, trying to wake up the girls from the trance they were, only to find them almost asleep in what seemed a post orgasmic experience, he cursed in his breath, now knowing that he couldn't explain their situation to whoever this group was. Resigned he decided to take out his invisibility cloak praying that it was enough for them only to find that it only could cover two of them and barely, resigning himself, he covered the girls and charmed the cloak to stick to their figures hoping that that was enough.

Then he thrown his and Hermione books in what used to be the teacher desk and pretended to study, hoping that they will believe his charade.

**XxX**

**R**on couldn't believe how lucky he was when Harry offered him the chance to get out of that room, really it was more than obvious that both girls were trying to be the most brainy of the group, something that was bonkers to him if you asked him, why fight over who knew more and who knew less.

But then he sighed in frustration and a little of melancholy, being with Hermione wasn't exactly how he was imagining it to be, yeah she was a great girl, but her habits were making him crazy, it's like she needed to excel at everything, she couldn't relax, she couldn't take a few minutes or hours to just be or enjoy.

An then it was the fact that if he was frank, when he kissed her it wasn't how Dean and Seamus or even how his brothers had described it, it was nice but, it didn't make him feel better or like he was flying or that silliness of butterflies on his stomach, he felt simply nothing.

It make him think about it, and yes, even he had the ability to think from time to time, not that he used it all the time but well, once on a while isn't that bad, sadly such a rare opportunity had to be rudely interrupted. "Well, well, well what do we have here, a Weasel without his guardians." That coyly and slimy voice was from none other that Draco Malfoy, making him stop immediately on his track, now noticing that he wasn't that far away from the classroom.

He looked at the blonde, trying to put a bravado that he wasn't really feeling at all now that he was alone and in a really obvious bad position. Sadly his tongue didn't seem to have any measure for precaution like the rest of his body. "What do you want Malfoy!" He barked, truly surprised that his voice didn't wavered like he was expecting it to do.

The blond sadly didn't seemed to take notice of his bravado, "Oh look it talks, I guess even the most dumb of animals could be trained to do some tricks," Of course that this seemed to be a funny thing to all his cronies who were like always, Crabbe and Goyle, Parkinson, and for his surprise Greengrass.

She looked totally different outside of the kitchen; her stance was perfect; her chin was maintained high giving her the image of elegance and femininity, of being regal and unreachable to the likes of him.

Her gaze was cold and calculating, she seemed to look at something behind his head and not to his eyes, like he was nothing or not even there, he was taken aback for that, she had been annoying at the kitchen, but she seemed reachable and slightly friendly, but that girl in front of him was not the annoying girl that he knew as Greengrass, but the rumoured 'Ice Queen'.

Sadly his staring got rudely interrupted when Malfoy shoved him violently against the wall with a levitating charm, he grunted in pain and surprise when his body collided with the hard stone. Everyone seemed to find his situation funny; in fact even Greengrass seemed to find it amusing.

He was about to lash out when another spell was thrown at him silencing him immediately, he was surprised and feeling slightly betrayed when he noticed that it was Greengrass who had done it. Draco for his part did notice it, "Well, this is surprising, the Weasel seems to have finally open his eyes and found a true witch to crush on, what about the Mudblood? Isn't she good enough on the bed? I bet that's the problem don't you think guys? But I am afraid that you are committing a huge miscalculation Weasel, Dear Daphne is …"

"That's Greengrass to you Malfoy!" Answered Daphne, her tone full of icy disapproval, Malfoy mock bowed his mistake and corrected his sentence, "Dear…"

Again the girl let her opinion know, "you are overstepping your boundaries Malfoy, and I am not in a first name basis with you and much less a 'dear'."

Pansy seemed to smile a little at Greengrass, at least admiring her drive while Crabbe and Goyle looked at her like she was the most stupid girl on the entire world, and where expecting a command from the blond to do their job. The scion of the Malfoy for his part seemed to have lost his composure, and in a few movements of his wand Ron was rendered incapable of any action when he was glued to the wall.

Now free to cast again the blond slowly looked at the girl, "You seem to be the one that don't know you boundaries '_Dear_' Greengrass, you see my father…"

"Holds no power over me and my family, and you know that Malfoy, so don't treat me as chattel or a _close friend_, because .NOT." Where the words of Daphne who slowly was getting prepared to launch an attack if he made the wrong movement, Draco for his part smiled coldly looking at her for a few seconds before he backed off, recognizing her words. "Mark my words Greengrass that you will remember this day, but that is a matter to another time, right now I am curious to know what is doing the Weasel in this place, after all it's abandoned."

Pansy greedily said, "Maybe he is expecting the Mudblood to shag her like the tramp she is, maybe she is expecting him in one of this abandoned classrooms." Draco smiled evilly, truly pleased with this probability, "You might have a point there Dear Pansy, in fact, maybe we should call our estimated Professor Umbridge so she could put that bookworm on her place once and for all."

Seeing the redhead trying to struggle out of the charm make him truly realise how close he was to the mark, "Pansy, come with me, we need to find the Mudblood; Crabbe, Goyle, go and fetch Professor Umbridge, Greengrass… HEY GREENGRASS WHERE DO YOU THINK YOU ARE GOING!"

The now leaving girl stopped to look at the disbelieving group coldly, "I have work to do Malfoy, I don't want to waste my valuable time showing the commoners who's better because I know my place and they theirs, I have three essays to conclude and I don't have time to spare to be part in this circus."

"How dare you to…" Malfoy shut his mouth immediately when her wand was pointing at his loins, the tip of said instrument containing a fuchsia glow, "..MYSELF. Malfoy, I. ., nor your friend, House comrades maybe, and that's a big MAYBE."

"My father will not tolerate-"

"You really want to be emasculated don't you?"

"You know better than me what will happen to you if you dare to,"

"The same applies to you; even your father can't touch me without suffering the consequences, after all I am a sold woman,"

"Mark my words Greengrass, you…" Malfoy immediately shut his mouth when he saw the glow increase significantly knowing that he was about to left behind much more than his pride if he didn't backed off. He angrily stomped off in the direction of Hermione, planning of venting his ire on her, Crabbe and Goyle following him close, leaving only the girls and Ron behind.

Pansy smirked, "You are playing a dangerous game Greengrass,"

"Don't lecture me Parkinson; I am aware of what is at risk."

"I was just saying, be aware that he will not let this slide that easily nor his father."

Daphne huffed, "The man that I was sold to isn't one that Malfoy can threaten or intimidate easily." She was about to leave when Pansy added, "You are sure that this is how you wanted to leave Hogwarts, full of enemies and friendless?" Daphne snorted, truly amused, "Will you be going to Hong Kong just to visit the shell I will become?"

"I don't, but Tracy may decide different than me,"

"She has her own problems to adjust; even you have a future that is predetermined by your head of house, after all isn't your father negotiating a deal with Goyle senior?"

Pansy remained silent, sighing profoundly before she added, "That's how it has been done, it's the tradition, I am prepared to uphold my position with all the dignity the name Parkinson disserves, I am not afraid." And with that, and not waiting for the girl to respond, Pansy leaved with haste trying to reach a probably now furious Malfoy.

Daphne for her part was silent, trying to not laugh sardonically at the false worlds of Parkinson, she looked at the direction of the now flabbergasted red head, slowly removing the silence from him and then only liberating one of his arms, hoping to see him react with some modicum of intelligence. "If you are intelligent enough, you will never mention what has been voiced here, or you will suffer a much worse destiny than Malfoy," She caressed his cheek then patted it two times to empathize what she could do to him.

He eagerly nodded, "Yes madam," He said, suddenly remembering all the courtesy classes that his mother had imparted upon him. She smiled, almost timidly at his reaction, clearly amused by his fear, "Good boy, you can be trained after all," She touched his nose with the tip of her index finger, ignoring his rosy cheeks fully knowing that he was offended by the remark, she then proceeded to walk to the direction of the stairs truly don't wanting to see what could probably happen to the Granger girl.

She only prayed that Malfoy was mistaken of her waiting for the red head on an abandoned class room, because if she was, then she was condemned.

**XxX**

"**I** can't open the door," Screamed in frustration Malfoy when he tried for the twentieth time to magically open it. It took him and the boys almost two minutes to find which door wasn't truly open, being Crabbe who stumbled upon this door after trying for some time.

Pansy huffed, now truly bored out of her wits, "You know, we are losing our time here, maybe this is a permanently closed door, after all wasn't this the floor that was forbidden in our first year?"

"It has to be the Mudblood! That's behind this door; there is not another explanation for this door to be locked so thoroughly."

The girl again huffed, already losing the faith on the boy that leaded this 'group,' bored and disappointed to not see the Granger girl humiliated, she said, "I am going to our common room, this is not working and we have to truly end our essays for tomorrow." Malfoy growled in frustration knowing that he would not open the door at any moment without their help, "Fine, let's go." He hastily left her behind, trying to make her like always 'follow him', she sighed truly asking for more patience with the blonde. She looked at the direction of the door and finally admitted, "This round goes to you Granger, but if you low your guard at least for a fraction of a second, that will be the moment when I will strike to put you on your place, remember that."

On the other side of the door, Harry sighed in relief, not hearing what Parkinson had said, nor truly knowing who was trying to enter he was just content to not be caught with the girls in such a compromising position.

"How much do you think they will be like this Jäger?" He asked, not uncovering the girls just in case, the cat seemed to ponder his question before he conceded '_**I believe that two more minutes should suffice for Renata to reach her full 'physical' form, after that, they should wake up of the trance.**_'

"Good, because I need to see if Ron is Okay, stay here and protect them not matter what's."

'_**You don't need to say it**_,'

**XxX**

"**R**on you are sure that you –"

"Yeah, I told you already .FINE. Nothing to worry about, they just glued me to the wall,"

Harry sighed, he knew the red head enough to see that he was clearly lying, something was truly bothering him, and he was frankly worried about it, he could be cursed or jinxed and his damn pride was more important to him than his health. "Are you-"

"Bloody Hell, stop it already," Screamed Ron in frustration, Harry backed off knowing that he had been annoying on his questioning. '_Another thing to blame this fucking situation, I used to be less persistent._' "Ok, let's patrol the area to be sure that those idiots don't come near the girls again." Harry said trying to gain more time.

Sadly Ron seemed to find his memory to be working really fine, "Wait, we can't let the girls alone like that, they could be in problems," He was about to spring in their direction when the hand of Harry took his shoulder firmly, "WAIT, they need a few moments without us,"

The redheaded boy was confused, "Why? I thought that they would be fine by now," Harry sighed, "Seriously Ron, do you thing that Hermione will concede defeat so easily, or Luna?" Ron for his part was pondering over the matter, truly knowing that Hermione wasn't the kind to let a problem pass that easily. "But we can't leave them there, knowing the bastard he could be coming here with the toad behind him!"

That seriously got the attention of Harry making him sweat. "You are right we need to prevent it, so that's why we are going to the stairs to see if we can at least prevent Umbridge to get to the third floor at all."

"And what about the girls?"

"Let them resolve their problems by themselves, or do you really want to be in the middle of that?" '_I sure do want to,_'

The shudder that Ron was showing did tell him that he wasn't thinking the same. Fortunately, "Let's go mate."

**XxX**

"**W**hy it had to be like this?" Asked Hermione now fully aware of her surroundings, she was sitting far away from Luna, with her knees in front on her chest while she hugged said appendices; Luna for her part was back to her serene self. Eyes closed and seemingly relaxed the cloak of invisibility on the chair beside of her.

"This wasn't supposed to be happening, it's not how I…"

"Hermione, the future it's not ours to see, remember that what will be, will be." Were the words of the blond who only got a huff in response.

"Look's who's talking! You are gorgeous, your hair is so beautiful and pristine, you have a terse and gorgeous skin, your eyes are to kill for and have you seen your breast and hips! How can he notice me with you at his side, I am so plane, my hair is a mess, my breast are small, my legs are too large and skinny, I am so-"

"Hermione STOP! Don't you dare to say more, I will not tolerate it anymore, you might believe that you are hideous but you are not, you aren't a beauty, nor I am, we both are quite plane in comparison to Brown, the Patil twins, Bones, Ginny, even CHO, but he find us beautiful, if you want to live constantly comparing yourself to others, then so be it, I can't change that but…"

"You don't understand,"

"Don't you dare to say that, DON'. say that in my face, you are so worried about what others think about you that you ignore how lucky you are, you have FRIENDS, not mattering how much you had to fight to be recognised by them, they at least accepted you, I have been ALONE for years, listening to their jokes and disdain, being always pitied and shunned, I had to use my imagination to at least maintain some modicum of sanity and even with that I was failing miserably, I was deteriorating more and more introverted with every new year, trying to ignore the stares and loathing by looking at the horizon, to space out at their mean words just to endure one more year, I had to made them uncomfortable to be around me really fast to prevent them from hurting me again, never reacting by fear of reciprocation… I had to punish someone harshly when they were beginning to think I was an easy prey to their depravations, and even then they never took me too seriously or where worried at all about me because I was alone and was easy to pick and forget." Luna's hair was sparkling with electricity, her eyes being unnaturally cold, sending shivers of shame and fear thought the brown haired witch.

The blond frowned, now fully aware that she was losing control of herself again, something that had beginning to happen after she had gained this new power, she inhaled, trying to regain her serenity.

Hermione for her part was trembling, trying to control herself, "I am so sorry!" Only to be interrupted by Luna,

"Please don't be, you aren't at fault here, I just lost control of Persephone for a second, she can be - _passionate_ about my past."

"I have to admit that I am afraid of Renata, she is so commandeering but at the same time, obedient, she constantly try to make me change or forget about what is important to me."

Luna nodded before she added, "Like correcting Ronald or 'saving the elves?'" Hermione gaped at how the girl seemed to know what she was thinking about, she finally decided to teach her a lesson, mostly because nobody else seemed to want to teach the girl about what she is doing wrong.

"Hermione believe me, I know what you are feeling, that need to change so many aspects of our culture and life that seems so wrong, inadequate or barbaric, because to me it's the right thing, but, have you ever wondered if what you are offering is really what they want or need?"

"Of course it is, look at them Luna, they are treated like chattel, mistreated horribly, they are practically slaves!"

Luna nodded, truly knowing that not all the House elves where truly fortunate with their masters. "I agree that some of them can be mistreated horribly, but what make's you believe that's the norm with them?"

"Just look at Dobby!" Insisted Hermione truly trying to open the eyes of the blonde just to find an eager face looking at her directly, Luna for her part, seeing that the girl didn't continue gently prodded her.

"What?"

"Continue please,"

"That's – that's all I know,"

Luna nodded, frowning a little, "So you are judging an entire race with such little information?"

"What, NO! They work hard for the wizards and don't get anything in exchange; they are almost naked most of the time, they are used, exploited and they- they." She promptly shut her mouth when Luna touched her lips with her index finger.

"Hermione you are a fascinating girl, a truly extraordinary human, but alas, you are judging them with human standards." The blonde said, getting a gasp from the brown headed witch.

"What-" Her indignation was immediately cut by again the hands of Luna who knowingly caressed her lips to stop her ranting, "Let me give you an example, when the colonist discovered America, what did they do to the natives?"

"They established…"

"No Hermione, I don't want you to tell me what the books said the colonist supposedly DID, I want you to truly think and tell me what they did."

Hermione shuddered with every new caress, feeling shivers and Goosebumps on her neck and back with every new stroke of Luna fingers over her lips and cheeks, but even with all those feelings her mind was on overdrive, researching all the information that she had studied about the theme, always founding the same conclusion. "They conquered and claimed the land for themselves." She admitted not truly seeing what Luna was trying to explain.

The blonde nodded giving her a pat on her cheek for said answer, "Yes they did, but even when they were subdued and conquered, the colonist did not stop there, because for them, the aborigines didn't knew a thing about anything and needed to be corrected and inducted to a proper culture… - Luna looked her directly at her eyes, making sure that she had her entire attention, seeing that she had, she continued - …They ignored the fact that the natives had their own culture and methods to survive in said lands before the colonist arrived, because for us they were only misguided people that desperately needed to be saved, even when they had methods of agriculture much more efficient than us, they ignored it, their believes, like's and dislikes of the natives didn't merit consideration because for the colonist, they needed to be saved from themselves… Do you know what I am trying to say here?"

"Not much."

Luna sighed, "Hermione, the colonists committed the mistake of impose their believes upon the aborigines without taking in consideration what they wanted, you are doing the same with the elves, you assumed that they needed to be saved, you ignored what they wanted or never bothered to ask them about their lives and culture, you saw one mistreated elf and assumed that ALL of them are treated like that."

"But they all work for nothing, only the wizards get a benefit for it,"

"Are you sure, can you bet your magic upon it?"

"What- NO!"

"Then you admit that you might be wrong."

"NO – I, you are twisting my words!"

"No Hermione I am doing what is obvious none of the teachers has done with you, I am TEACHING YOU about house elves, you claim they need to be paid, are you sure that that's what they want?"

"I don't know, but they should receive a recompense for the hard work they do!"

"And what will an elf do with gold?"

"Whatever they need or want"

"Again you are thinking over it as a Human, they don't use money because they don't need it, they have all their needs covered, a house where to live, food to maintain its family…"

"IT's NOT true, I was in a wizardly home, and they hanged the beheaded heads of the elves as a repay for a life of good and hard work, that's barbarism, it's-"

"Again, judging the fate of an entire race for a few anomalies, Hermione are you putting any attention to what I am saying? You used to be a wonderful and incomparable researcher, for what Harry has told me about you and what I have heard of you, you don't reach a definite conclusion just because you found some little information about it, you search and dig every book or hole to find everything about it to judge it accordingly and without a doubt, but frankly right now you are not being at all that girl."

"BUT IT WAS HORRIBLE! I saw how the wizardly world treated those that were different, I saw people I loved and respected act with disdain to a creature that truly needed help, I – I – I am scared that that's how I am going to be treated just because I am a Muggleborn! That no mattering how hard or how much I work, in the end I will just be another head on the wall." Hermione finally admitted, now openly weeping about it, admitting why the situation was bothering her so much.

Luna for her part was surprised, she had obviously thought wrong why the girl was being how she was about the elf problem, she hugged her, now at least understanding her much more, she certainly was an imposing girl, but again it seemed that her behaviour was very similar to her own, mostly based on fears and insecurities.

She rocked her slowly, trying to comfort her to the best of her abilities, surprised at how little it was bothering her now the closeness to the girl, and how nice the experience was. "To me and Harry you will never be expendable, you are important to us, you just don't know how much."

"Do you promise it?"

"I swear on my life."

Hermione was confused but relaxed after hearing that, confused mostly because her body was aching with a feeling the she had never feel before for any other girl, the hand of Luna caressing her hair then her back over and over was making her relax more and more, she separated a little from the blond, now seeing her at the eyes then at the lips, she was closing the distance between them slowly, hearing and feeling her heart hammering against her chest, she couldn't think properly, she only desired to taste her, to feel the same sensation that she had received that glorious night, that she had significance, a place where she was loved, desired and important.

Finally she touched her lips with hers, and with a little push, both where kissing slowly and delicately. Luna's lips were soft, and tasted like banana pudding, sweet but not too much, just the necessary amount.

On the other side of the classroom Jäger was too distracted to notice the warning of proximity, again letting his libido take the better of him, by the time he noticed that someone was opening the door it was too late.

**XxX**

**R**on had entered the room he was preoccupied for Hermione, at least fifteen minutes had passed after the Malfoy incident and both girls didn't come out, he had patrolled the perimeter enough and needed to see for himself that Hermione was fine, he was even worried for Luna so he finally decided to open the door this time.

Harry was behind him and for a reason he was nervous, Ron had assumed that he was worried too, after all they where their girlfriends so it has to be because of that, but when he opened the door what he found wasn't at all what he truly expected to see.

The first thing he saw was a really big cat, a translucent cat, at first he thought that it was a Patronus, but the fact that from his mouth emerged a curse was insignificant to him, the cat (one that looked a lot like a Lion, but not any kind of Lion that he knew), was transparent so he could see that Luna and Hermione where on the floor both involved in what he decided was a kiss.

It wasn't to the surprise of anyone that he exploded, "WHAT THE BLOODY HELL IS HAPPENING HERE!" He tried to pass the Patronus thing, but it growled, it literally growled at him, both girls were hurriedly trying to get on their feet, both looking surprised and taken aback. He was about to launch himself against the entity when Harry screamed, "RON DON'T MOVE!" Taking him by surprise, he truly tried to put his entire attention on the beast, he really wanted, but the way the Lion thingy reacted to Harry was mesmerizing to him, in fact, it seemed to be disappearing really fast now that Harry was there, as if his presence was absorbing it.

He narrowed his eyes, "What is happening here Harry," Something was off, he wasn't the most brilliant bloke in the world, even he recognized that, but even a dunderhead like him could notice that something was amiss.

His heart was beating painfully at his chest, so hard that he could literally heard it, he looked at Harry, now seeing him try to hide his eyes from him, he knew, he always knew what was happening here and never told him. Ron never had feel like this on his entire life, it wasn't indignation and jealousy as it has been before, it wasn't shame or fear, it was like nothing he had feel in the past, he simply didn't knew how to describe it.

"Ron I-" He looked at the direction of Hermione who now had tears on her eyes, she was trembling and her eyes seemed to implore him to listen, he backed off from her, ignoring how with every new second at how she was looking desperate for him to listen to her, even when her voice didn't seemed to work at the moment. He glanced at Luna, who for the first time in all his life seemed serious and somewhat ashamed; she wasn't looking at him but mostly at her feet, avoiding him, something that she had never done before, even when he was being an idiot with her.

Ron felt a hand of his shoulder and knew it was Harry, "Ron Listen-" the redhead couldn't hear no more, his body reacted by itself, and without even noticing it he had punched what used to be his best friend.

The screams of "HARRY!" that echoed on the room as the boy impacted against the floor only seemed to make him more angry, he looked at the direction of the girls to see them looking at him disapprovingly and with a touch of anger, he needed to leave, but Harry was fast on his feet now trying to talk to him again, "RON PLEASE-"

"SHUT UP!" Ron had never felt so angry in his life, so disappointed so, betrayed. Where they doing all of this on porpoise for what he had done last year? Sadly Harry didn't seem to want him to leave, even if that was the only thing the redhead wanted at the moment. The Black haired boy positioned himself on the door blocking it; Ron almost growled not knowing the mistake he was making, "Get off," Harry negated him the possibility to escape, "Not after you hear us first,"

"Their is nothing to hear,"

"Ron, please-" Hermione implored trying to touch his shoulder.

"SHUT UP! I DON'T WANT TO HEAR IT," He knew even in his state that he had committed a horrid mistake when he shoved her away from him, Luna growled and captured the surprised girl on her hands, Harry on the other hand seemed to lose the composure. "YOU BASTARD!" and launched himself against Ron, who now was not only angry but hurt in so many ways that he never had experienced before.

Harry and Ron impacted on the floor with brutality, the redhead shouting in pain and ire, Harry grunted, now trying to control the red head before he screamed in pain when his ribs were punched, by instincts he reacted and punched Ron two times on the head, both boys now bleeding, Ron at his lips and Harry on his knuckles thanks to the redhead teeth's. Hermione for her part screamed in horror, "STOP IT, PLEASE STOP!" While Luna tried to contain her from going to them in such a state, everyone was forgetting their wands and the fact that they could use magic in the heat of the moment.

Ron used his weight to throw Harry away from him, now forgetting that he wanted to escape at all and lunging at the boy, giving him at least three punches on the face and stomach only to be thrown away from Harry thanks to a sudden surge of energy, Ron screamed in pain and surprise, feeling his hand as if it was on fire, just on the spot where he was bleeding, that seemed to end the fight now that both boys were out of energy. Hermione and Luna rushed to Ron seeing him spams for a while before he lashed out at them, making Harry growl menacingly at him.

The redhead snarled, now confused at the behaviour of Harry and of course the fact that he was feeling suddenly invigorated but most of all, furious, it only lasted for a second before it disappeared, his hand now only stinging a little, he tried to get on his feet only to fail miserably.

"Ron please let-" Hermione implored, devastated with this situation, Ron didn't look at her immediately but his angry retort was indeed heard, "DON'T SAY MY NAME, DON'T TALK TO ME, I TRUSTED IN YOU! I TRUSTED IN YOU ALL, I KNOW THAT I MADE A MISTAKE LAST YEAR, IS THIS HOW YOU ARE PUNISHING ME, IS IT!"

"No Ron please I can explain," Said Harry, now deflating at the look of pure pain on the boy face.

"SHUT UP, JUST, SHUT UP…" a sob finally escaped, his ire being slowly replaced by a pain that he hasn't feel ever. He got on his feet ignoring the look and the tears that all of them were showing, "Just leave me alone," he finally said his voice on the verge of cracking, he didn't knew how he had, but he used his now sore body to run outside the abandoned classroom, pass the moving stairs and the hallways, trying to reach the only place where he had feel truly welcomed lately, he failed to tickle the pear two times, but in the end he made it barely before he got inside of the school kitchen where a surprised Girl and a bunch of elves received a now openly weeping redhead.

He didn't wanted to show this to Greengrass, he truly didn't, but he has no force to contain what he was feeling anymore, so even when he was showing such weakness in front of a Slytherin no less, he cried, for the first time in a long while feeling truly alone in the world.

**XxX **

**D**aphne was quite frankly preoccupied; at least one week had passed from that horrid day when her plans to get closer to Potter had all but failed thanks to a series of events that were out of her control. That night just after the end of the Hogsmead when she and the others were trying to found Potter and his friends on the third floor, everything just fall apart even without the intervention of Malfoy, months of scheming thrown away just for what she supposed was probably the first serious row between the '_golden trio,_' What exactly happened she wasn't really sure, but even when it was more than obvious that Weasley was casted out from the group for some reason, the annoying dunderhead was keeping his mouth shut, only confessing his problems to Dipsy.

In fact this seemed to be what Malfoy and Umbridge were expecting for, to the point that it was almost as if the two were together, Malfoy capitalized the red head as a mean to get to Potter, hoping to get an reaction that Umbridge could see and punish him for, in the end the result was as dramatic as if was laughable, Malfoy insulted Weasley a little too much and got pummelled in a matter of seconds by a furious redhead.

In fact only one punch was enough to send the git to oblivion, being his lackeys who ended truly thrashed after they got over the initial surprise, all of this in front of the eyes of the entire school, Umbridge capitalized this as an obvious approach to get information on the '_boy who lived_', punishing Weasley harshly with an entire month under her surveillance with the '_intention to correct him of such barbaric and unnecessary ways,_' of course that her intentions were so obvious to her that if they were more see-through than that, then the woman would have been know as the _invisible_ Under secretary Dolores Umbridge.

Of course not satisfied with that, the woman had declared the following day after what appeared to be an '_unsuccessful attempt_' to get information from Weasley about what she wanted, Umbridge has posted a large sign up, declaring 'All Student Organizations, Societies, Teams, Groups, and Clubs are henceforth disbanded'. This was her decree number twenty-four of a long list of annoying and ridiculous stipulations that made her the less liked teacher of the year. A great feat considering how _Popular,_ was Severus with the students.

She sighed, now going for the kitchen with the intention to get the redhead to trust in her enough to tell her the ENTIRE story of what happened that damned night, she needed to know what occurred and how she could twist it or correct it, her life depended of it, she refused to be a sexual toy to be displayed at her 'master' pleasure.

She HAD to ESCAPE the LI family no matter what, and a Weasley wasn't going to impede it.

**XxX**

**L**una was a complicated girl, she liked to follow what she considered was the most practical and logical way to reach a conclusion, she was good at research, (not at the level of Hermione but she could hold her ground), she was excellent at the practical application, but most of all, she was really, really good in finding solutions to really complex problems.

Arithmancy, Runes, Journalism, Cryptozoology, every one of these electives (of course excluding Journalism and Cryptozoology). Offered a complicated problem that she was fascinated to confront and resolve, when in third year she had the option to get electives, she choose those that her own mother had excelled in, just because she was feeling that by doing so she will feel more close to what used to be her mother. Of course that this failed completely, she found them interesting and quite enjoyable, but they didn't in any way or sense, fulfill that hole, that need on her life that was slowly growing and occluding her true self away, the mistreatment, the loneliness and the betrayals were just the final nail on the coffin that sealed Luna away and let 'Looney' get a complete control of her body and life.

But of course everything changed when she encountered Harry at the forest, at that point in her life, 'Looney' Lovegood was finally getting her defenses down, trusting in Harry of not breaking her heart as so many 'friends' had done in the past.

If she was honest with herself, she would admit that she was quite desperate for human contact, and with Harry she got that and much more letting her true self get a taste of true friendship and love, it was her instability and desperation for friends what got Hermione and Herself in such a deal, she as the rest of the Students at Hogwarts did know how close Granger and Harry were, so at that moment, when she found the girl spying on them something inside of her snapped, truly believing that she needed to gain Hermione affection immediately if she wanted to conserve Harry, that if she wanted to be with him he needed her support, so she imprudently dragged the girl in that mess without truly thinking about it getting them in the situation that they were now.

This year has been the best of her life after the death of her mother; she not only counted with Harry and by extension Hermione thanks to the cats, but after that she got reacquainted with Ginevra and Ronald and finally but not less important discovered how good of a friend Neville could be if you give him the chance.

But now, again for her own imprudence and lack of patience, she had caused an event that shouldn't have happened at all, it was quite obvious to her that the relationship between Hermione and Ronald was destined to fail thanks to the situation the girl was involved in, it wasn't fair she conceded that, but life was all but fair, she was almost the embodiment of that. She missed Ronald dearly, he was after all an important friend to her, so after hearing and consoling Hermione for four days after what she named '_the disaster of Hogsmead_', she honestly tried to confront the redhead with the intention to clarify and regain his trust.

It was another calamity, one that she was afraid to admit at all, she wanted to curse him, to hex him and so much more, but every word, every shout and tear was to make a point clear, He didn't wanted any of them close to him, to him Harry didn't existed, nor Hermione and most of all, HER didn't existed at ALL.

He was obviously mistreated; his right hand was clearly showing signs of abuse. It seemed that Umbridge was doing her best to get what she wanted, even if she had to resort to barbarism to get it. She tried to ask, consumed in worry but this seemed to make him more belligerent.

But even when his words were caustic, even when her heart was breaking for the lost bond, what truly made her weep was what they had done to him. Harry could be the most powerful host of the three, but she was the most sensitive, and she could see that the fist fight had done much more damage that they had thought.

Ron showed a small but still present signal of a cat, a tiny spark, as little as it could come, half formed and barely charged, a seed that was expecting the creation of a contract to germinate and create the life it was intended. That created then another problem that they hasn't predicted, one that they should have asked to the cats, especially Jäger, because it seemed that they were forms of spreading the cats that didn't necessarily involved sex, most probably by blood, after all both teens were in a room where Persephone and Renata had created a ambiance close to the one they had created that night, that was probably what the cat's interpreted as an opportunity to spread their own, that created the contract or at least the first part, Harry punched Ronald on the face cutting himself in the process, it seemed that a tiny amount of blood was all they needed to begin the process, only the interruption of the whole thing prevented something from happening, but the damage, not mattering how little it was, was done and they had to take measurements that they hasn't taken before.

They needed to find everything about the process; they needed to learn to fully control this before they even attempted to reunite with another group.

Luna sighed, even when this year was probably the best of her young life, it seemed that it was aiming for the most complicated and probably dangerous too.

**XxX**

"**W**HAT!"

"There's no need to shout Harry, my ears work properly you know."

"But that's, that's impossible! Jäger never told me anything about that," Bellowed Harry truly terrified of the news that his girlfriend had said to him, making him angry and preoccupied, Hermione for her part was distraught by this information so she hastily added, "Does this mean that Ron could have transmitted a spark on Malfoy or Crabbe or Goyle by just punching them!"

Harry frowned shouting balefully, "JÄGER!" forcing said cat to get out of his body for the first time in a long while, now noticing that in the week that had passed ALL cat's seemed suspiciously quiet. Never noticing their silence due to the series of problems and the emotional distress they had.

The cat appeared slowly as if he was trying desperately to not appear at all, sadly for him said wish was soundly denied, Harry for his part was about to launch himself over the translucent lion just to get an answer, but the sudden apparition of Persephone and Renata put him on guard not knowing what really was about to happen.

Luna had her wand on her hand so did Hermione, both truly aware that something big was about to happen, something that will define what road they will take from now on.

Harry asked wearily, now more conscious that they were at disadvantage in terms of velocity and sheer power, "**There is no need to be on guard, we are here to only answer your questions,**" Jäger said, an air of annoyance and displeasure surrounding him, both Persephone and Renata nodded. Hermione didn't lose the time to launch the question.

"Why didn't you tell us about this?"

Jäger for his part huffed apparently in frustration, "**Because we don't need to, even after all this time you still don't understand what we truly are don't you?**"

"And how could we understand it if you hide information from us!"

"**We don't hide information from any of you, we can't, remember, we didn't exist before so we couldn't plan ahead or scheme against you, I was created to solve a problem that's affecting the world, we had base instincts but that's all we had before we needed a host to stabilize, all of our knowledge it's acquired thanks to our host, we know what you know, we can reach to different answers with the same knowledge but that's it.**"

Harry finally decided to ask, "Then why we don't know anything about the blood!"

"**That's easy, you simply didn't cared, you were so focused on you that you never bothered to look at what was happening around you, so focused on the why, suffering because other's could shun you and hate you, you humans take too much importance to what others might say about yourselves, never satisfied with what and who you are…**"

"Enough, we know that, you don't need to say it anymore, what we want to know is WHY or how Ron was infected by our blood if that was never our intention!" Asked Hermione too uncomfortable with the scrutiny of Renata upon her with every word Jäger said.

The Lion alike huffed, "**He was in the correct place at the wrong time.**"

Persephone continued after his silence, "**I and Renata had overcharged the ambiance with our essence; after all I was infusing Hermione with a raw flux of magic to make her resident grown, our saliva don't contain any curse like the Vampires or werewolves, we don't need to bite to transmit our power, the bite is just foreplay.**"

Ignoring how the teens seemed to flush at this admission, Renata continued, "**We imbue the air with our power when we mate, if Ron hasn't intervened the girls would have concluded the ritual, but alas, it wasn't meant to be at that moment, when Ron entered the classroom he was being bathed with our power, he just need to be magical to make our instincts react and overtake, he was without an spark and our main mission is to spread our kind, it was just too good to ignore.**"

Hermione was about to rant when Jäger decided to add, "**It's like your need to breath we can't evade it, it's what we are here to do, our kind true shape it's ozone, pure ozone, and the earth it's slowly losing it's protection, we were created to fix that problem and correct the damage that losing the ozone would cause to the earth.**"

Hermione couldn't evade the question, "How it's that possible, ozone it's highly pollutant down here, you would need to be in the ozone layer to be beneficial."

Persephone answered, "**That's why our race was condemned to die on the first place, the flow of magic of the world is too weak right now to create us where we are needed, the most powerful magic of the earth it's too close to the ground and that make us a liability, mostly because we will poison the animals and burn the plants, but if we gain a host to contain us and prevent from damaging the earth we would be spared of death.**"

Harry asked, "But wouldn't that kills us too?"

"**We aren't poisonous to you or your peers; however our pups will definitely be hazardous to anything alive down here.**"

"WHAT!"

"Do you mean that we can't have kids…"

"**No you dunderhead, don't reach conclusions without all the information! OURS as in, WE the CATS, we can have offspring of our own, or at least something close to it, to create a pure 'Thundercat' as you had baptized us we only need to concentrate a little of our power and reach another frequency similar to ours, the deal it's that they aren't truly alive, they will be part of the solution, they will go to the ozone layer and will not stay here with us, they will not be conscious, just a bunch of power and the reason for why we are here.**"

Luna finally broke her silence, "This it's really interesting, but you haven't truly answered our question," Persephone sighed, "**We are reaching it darling, you see, when Jäger offered the deal and Harry accepted the way at how we can be spread was imparted upon him, but –**" She glared at Harry who was about to interfere again, "**But like all males, he only took importance of the sexual part, yes we can be passed with sexual intercourse, but the creation of a cat it's mostly because of the significance of the act.**"

"What do you mean?" Asked Luna truly curious, Renata promptly answered, "**We need life to be created, like all creatures in the world, the seed of males it's a focus of life, it's contain the key to create it, while the female had the mean to nurture it and shape it, both are needed to create life, we use that act as a medium, but life also needs blood to sustain and maintain its functionality, without blood life will perish, so that substance is still a big part of how one of us is created.**"

"So when Ron was bathed in your essence, and then I broke my knuckle with his teeth, that ridicule small amount of blood was enough to spark the life of a cat?" Harry asked not truly believing it.

Jäger answered, "**In the end, you only need a tiny spermatozoid to create a spark of life, a ridicule small amount considering how much a male can shoot. But what happened to Ron it's not complete, it's just the spark, his magic sustains it but it lacks a mind of his own, he hasn't a contract and that's why he can't expand the spark to others, he lacks the power to do it, however…**"

"However what," Hermione Asked still feeling miserable after what she had done to the boy, Persephone answered, "**However it's already affecting his conduct, he is being reclusive and irritable, borderline hostile to those that he can barely tolerate, I understand that this is not how he usually behaves.**"

Harry sighed, "He is not reclusive, even when he is mad at us, he finds others to talk and to spend his time with, he is rather hostile to those that he don't know well or tolerate, not trusting then easily, especially if they are from Slytherin."

Renata nodded, "**Then we are worrying for noting, we thought that he was being slowly overtaken by the instincts of the beast, but he was all the time an easily grumpy boy, we still need to maintain an eye upon him, we had failed him as a friend and we need to correct that.**" After that she disappeared, her particles leaving a trail that reached her old position to where Hermione was.

Jäger nodded, "**It was my mistake what put us in this problem, if I could, I want to ask forgiveness for it, and hope to never make it again.**" He disappeared in the same fashion that Renata, Persephone was about to do the same when Luna asked, "How much time do Ronald have before his magic finally make his spark mature enough to affect him?"

The lioness didn't answered immediately seemingly in deep thought, "**We don't know, this is an ambience full of magic, raw and residual both are abundant here, it could be weeks or months we don't truly know.**" And then she vanished leaving a heavy silence behind.

Harry was about to say something when Luna interrupted him, "We need to confess it to Ginny and Neville," Both listeners instantly exploded.

"WHAT-"

"WHY?"

She waited for a while hoping that by letting them vent their frustration the conversation between them would be more rational. "They are our friends, if they are true to their intentions, then they will still be our friends even if we aren't human anymore, we can't repeat the same mistake with Ronald and infect them accidentally, because they will sooner or later found us in a compromising position, and we can't do this alone anymore, we need help."

"But the more people know about our secret-"

"We need help Hermione, we are trying to create a study group, we will be, and in fact we are surrounded by people and we can't permit the tiniest of mistakes, Ginny and Neville are our friends, they need to know about us, about the cats and our relationship."

"My father and his friends accepted Remus in their circle, why can't they do the same for us?" Harry was trying to convince himself and Hermione, mostly aware that they can't hold the secret for much longer with Ron in that state. Hermione for her part was reticent; it was clearly obvious in her face.

"Please at least let me have a day for myself, I need to research in the library about this phenomena, I can't believe that we are the first on the history to experience such a thing, in the books had to be a registry of this happening." Hermione asked, imploring with her voice and eyes, they admitted that she had a point.

"Well, I will accompany you then Hermione, Harry can try to speak with Ron again, it's imperative that he understand what is happening to us and him, that and it's clearly obvious that he is being tortured by Umbridge." Luna said, now seeing at Harry with a serene but piercing stare. The boy for his part sighed, "I don't promise anything, he is just upset with us and it can take a while for him to cool down, I have noticed his arm but someone it's healing him quite well, the scars are barely noticeable."

"It's probably the elves!" Said Hermione, gaining a gasp from Harry and a stare from Luna, "What? I knew all the time that he was going to see the elves, who knows better this castle than them? I just was… too preoccupied by other things to truly care about it." She looked in the direction of Luna who slowly nodded, understanding that what she had confessed that night was a secret between the two of them and only them, at least for now.

Harry sighed, now feeling like a fool, "So, when you were acting so frustrated and…"

"I wasn't truly, it was the fact that all of you were trying to hide something from me that got me so bothered, I didn't want to be left aside by my friends, I…" she closed her mouth, now her voice wavering and her eyes watering, Luna hugged her hard, knowing that all of them where still too affected by what had happened.

**XxX**

**H**ermione huffed, "Well this is it, I can't believe that the library wasn't of any help."

"Why are you so angry?" Asked Harry while he was pacing back and fort, nervous for what was going to happen in fifteen minutes on this abandoned classroom.

Luna looked at him, "Hogwarts has one, if not the most complete library on the United Kingdom, and even with that we failed to find at least a tiny lead or clue about our unique situation."

Hermione nodded, "Yeah, I know that one simple day of research can't be truly efficient. But our situation it's really peculiar and specific, but still, the information we found its still interesting no less."

"Really, why?" Harry asked, truly curious.

Hermione nodded, "Yeah, by example the Thundercats are remarkably similar to a Japanese creature named **Raijū, **but sadly only in appearance, this creature it's really complicated, it can show itself in different forms, and his body it's conformed neither of lightning or fire, it says that the Japanese reserve has documented them in several shapes, like that of a Tanuki, that's a Raccoon dog, a wolf, weasel, monkey and of course a cat, but this is not the most interesting aspect of this species, it's the fact that it tends to use humans in a similar fashion that our cats, sadly not in a symbiotic way, they sleep on the navels of a human mainly to recharge themselves and of course rest, in the Japanese folklore it's Raiden, another Japanese entity who takes them out with an strike of lightning, but in the real world when a Raijū sleeps on a human body it's inherent magic will slowly make said human more vulnerable to lightning by attracting them with a opposing charge, making the host a walking target."

Luna continued, "That's the most similar case we have found so far, so we tried to find a creature that could fulfill the need for what our cat were created, and we found this, the Thunderbird, it's a rare magical bird that lives on the American continent, it's on the list of extinction species mostly by how it's feathers are a desired item for wands and potion ingredients, sadly only the feathers are of use for the magicians, it's body seems to be useless, seemingly lacking any value to us, it's population has diminished thanks to the hunters, mostly because there is only a place in the entire world where they reunite to breed in an event that even Muggles can see and register."

"Really, why can't they control it, it's a serious breach of the secrecy statute," Asked Harry, trying to ponder why would they let the Muggles see it.

"Because it's massive, it's located in south America on a country called Venezuela, it's an event that the Muggles had seen for years, they call it the lightning of Catatumbo, named like that because the breeding area it's just over a river called Catatumbo that later empties in a huge lake called Maracaibo, By centuries this event has been recorded by the Muggles as a atmospheric singularity and the magical authorities only encourage this belief, but the most curious thing is that it's has been confirmed that this event do make sense in Muggle terms, mostly because the birds produce an effect that they can prove and analyze, and that's is what made the Thundercats story more tangible for us."

"How so?" Harry asked, seeing that Luna was too relaxed at the moment, probably pondering the possibilities of what they had discovered.

Hermione continued truly captivated by the information, "The Muggles had found that this event renovate at least ten percent of the ozone on the earth, but sadly on the tropospheric ozone, the ozone layer it's still too high to receive the benefits of this creatures and it seems it's slowly diminishing it's size with every new year."

"I am surprised that the magical are using Muggle terminology to explain the situation," Inquired Harry, Hermione smiled seeing that question coming.

"It's a delicate process Harry, a magical creature it's making a huge hole in our world, enough to Muggles to see and register, they need to be versed in what they do to prevent a leak, sadly it seems that some think that the risk is still too high and consider the bird a danger to our society and are doing the impossible to exterminate the few remaining specimens, not seeing how much damage they are doing at the planet itself, it's probably by this that the planet itself it's trying to create a solution."

Luna opened her eyes finally reaching a conclusion, "Our society it's constructed to think that we humans, are the most advanced race on the earth, that nothing can be our equal or close to what we are, but sadly this is not the truth, at least for us of the magical kind."

Harry asked slightly confused, "Why do you say that Luna?"

The blond girl smiled, "Harry what had you learned about Centaurs, mermaids and other sentient beings? We aren't the only one's that can construct and create a society, they are others capable of doing the same wonders than us."

"But we are ruling the world, doesn't that make us, I don't know, better?"

"Not precisely, we breed fast and exterminate those that oppose us or that we don't understand, to reach our goals. We are not the best, only the more dominant."

"I still don't see the point here," Said Harry now truly confused. He might be more applied now, but that doesn't instantly make him a genius, Hermione decided to clarify him.

"Harry what Luna it's trying to say, it's that we aren't probably the most advanced creature of this planet, but that we think that the planet itself is the most advanced creature."

"How can that be true? it's, well, a planet isn't sentient, or even alive,"

Luna looked at him, "Are you sure of that? Old cultures adored the spirit of the earth naming her Gaia, truly believing that we were all part of a huge living organism."

Hermione nodded, "it isn't that crazy Harry, just look at us, we are an entity, but inside of us live millions of others creatures, some of them damaging us, others repairing us, we never knew they existed until we were looking for them. The planet might not be truly sentient like us, but it might be alive and it's trying to solve what is slowly killing him, it's just a matter of time before…"

"Before what?" Asked Harry, truly enthralled with what they were saying.

Luna answered him with a calm voice, "Before the planet itself decides that we are the problem and tries to get ride of us, so be it with more magical creatures or with several climatic catastrophes, it's still uncertain, but some believe that the wild flow of magic can make a hurricane more or less lethal depending of how much it's imbued on it, the same with a volcano, earthquake and others."

"But they, they are separate things, how can the magic affect…"

"Harry magic isn't something that we magical created, it's a part of nature itself, of course magic can affect those events." Said Luna now slowly caressing his cheek, Hermione for her part added.

"I don't think that it will be something immediate, the planet has been here for eons, it might be something slow to us, but the planet sooner or later will erase us and replace us, it might even take hundred's if not thousands of years to do so."

Sighing Harry massaged his head, trying to truly grasp what the girls were trying to say, "So, in the end, the story of the cats has some modicum of veracity, and then what, are we supposed to be the ones that save the world?"

Luna nodded, "Yes, but not in a literally sense, our existence it's a solution to a problem that it's diminishing the earth magic, by just being us we are saving the planet, we only need to expand the Thundercats to create a permanent solution to the problem."

Harry immediately grimaced truly knowing what she was about to say, "Please you must be joking tell me you are."

Luna denied with her head, "Sorry Harry, but it's something we can't escape, we will have to create more cats. We need them to procreate."

He was about to ask something when the door opened violently, letting a furious ginger head enter with a slightly cowered Neville behind her, Harry blanched at the look she was sending on their direction, it seemed that in the end Ron finally had revealed why they weren't on the best terms lately.

Luna of all people vociferated what He and Hermione were truly feeling, "Oh Bollocks,"

**TBC **


	11. Chapter 11

**T**he silence was overwhelming; the tension almost unbearable after they told Ginny what happened and what they are, the girl seemed more confused than furious, but you could clearly see in her eyes that her temper was barely contained. Hermione seemed on the verge of tears while Luna was clearly uncomfortable, Harry for his part was just sighing in frustration.

Neville was just plainly confused.

Finally after a few minutes of staring Ginny sighed and said, "I can't believe what I am going to say, but I believe you." This seemed to put a smile on the face of Hermione and Luna while Harry seemed just relieved.

"I am so sorry-" Began to say the Brunette when Ginny suddenly interrupted.

"Keep them; I am not the one you need to ask for forgiveness Hermione, I really should hex you for this but I can't, not when I –" she looked at Harry for a second reaching a conclusion at that moment. Harry for his part knew at that moment that he has lost something worthwhile with her. He tried to say something but she interrupted him immediately. "Keep it Harry, what's done it's done, you can't change what happened, besides I don't share my love, at least not in that way. I am not going to judge you guys for what you are, much less what you do with your lives that's your choice."

Saying that she walked to the door reaching it in a few strides before Luna asked, "Will you ever forgive us Ginevra?"

The redhead stopped thinking over it for a second, "I am really angry for what you three did to my brother, he might be annoying and he certainly is an idiot sometimes, but he is my brother, my kin. I can't just ignore what happened and smile like nothing had changed, my opinion of all of you it's at hold right now waiting for your actions." And without looking at them, she opened the door and parted leaving them behind.

Neville for his part sighed now finally speaking, "I can't deny that I am surprised even disappointed by your actions, but I can understand, believe me that I do." He looked at the door sighing before he looked at Hermione at her eyes, "I can understand your fears, I have liked Ginny for a while –" he now was looking at Harry, "but never did anything because she was waiting for you to notice her-" he looked at Hermione again. "So I know how it is to wish to have everything and end with nothing in the end, you need to speak with Ron, especially about his condition."

Harry finally nodded, "We will,"

Neville nodded back, "Hopefully everything can be solved. Goodbye." He parted hastily trying to reach Ginny leaving the three behind.

Hermione sighed, "She hate's me the entire Weasley clan will hate me for this,"

"Hate us, don't forget that we were part of this too," Said Harry only to hear a snort from Hermione.

"Don't say that please, they were sincere with us, so please let's be frank here, It is my fault and mine alone, I used him and keep doing it because I was too pig-headed to renounce at my 'normalcy', I-"

"Stop," Said Harry.

"No Harry I-"

"I SAID STOP!" Commandeered Harry making the girl stop immediately, Luna was looking him closely while Hermione seemed stricken at his action.

He sighed knowing that he had crossed a line with them but he needed to say what he was feeling, "Stop it please, we all have something to do with this, I am his friend too, and I knew what was happening and what you were doing, I wanted to stop it, I could have stopped it but I didn't. I made a mistake, all of us, not only you Hermione so stop, right now."

He looked at them who where looking at him, "And I know that I am a shameful bastard for this, but I am glad that this happened because I finally have you back Hermione, I KNOW, I really know how much of a bastard that make me but I can't stop it, it's how I feel. And I need you both at my side to feel complete, it might be thanks to the cats but that doesn't change the fact that I love you both, I will try to gain Ron back but not at the cost of you degrading yourself Hermione, we made a mistake and will try to solve it."

Hermione nodded smiling a little while Luna nodded too before she added, "I like it when you are more asertive Harry, but if you scream at us again I will hex you."

Harry smiled, "I´ll keep it in mind."

**XxX**

**S**adly, regaining Ron's trust was more easily said than done, he seemed to be at least pretty good at evasion when he wanted to be alone, especially when he tried to search in the kitchen only to discovered thanks to Dobby that he was not welcomed there. Not by him, he actually asked many times to be forgiven for giving that notice, but by a few female elves that seemed to have developed a motherly instinct over the redhead.

At least he hoped that it was motherly instincts.

But that didn't mean that he would just give up, sooner (hopefully) or later they will talk and resolve this. But that was not the only occurrences in his life, as they had expected Umbridge did come to some of their classes, she was brutal with Trelawney clearly putting off the eccentric woman on Purpose.

Then another class with her almost ended in a disaster when it was most than obvious that she was attacking Ron just to spite him, he tried to intervene but one look at the redhead stopped him on his tracks, for the first time after what happened that night Ron had looked at him and it wasn't pretty. He could see that he was still consumed by his pain, his pride and something more, it was clear that he was slowly losing the battle against the beast.

He tried again to approach him but it he was soundly ignored.

He took out his frustration in the gathering by destroying everything that could be pummelled, hexed, jinxed and to his surprise even charmed. When he was out of steam, the girls repaired everything to not leave evidence to Umbridge that she could use against them, at first Hermione opposed but Luna told her that it was an excellent exercise for all of them.

Sadly so far Harry was more interested in destroying that repairing, but the girls didn't complained too much, after all it showed how much they were progressing.

The opportunity of Umbridge with Potions wasn't that good for the student population thanks that the man seemed to be clearly irritated at her presence meaning that they had to deal with harder classes thanks to the woman.

Harry finally noticed that he and Umbridge shared something in common when Hagrid was involved, both really wanted to find were he was, the fact that Malfoy seemed to know something that he didn't was frustrating.

The "_Messing with stuff that's too_big_for him."_ Of Malfoy when they were studying Bowtruckles still resounded on his head to this day. Sadly when Hagrid was involved that could literally mean everything.

He was really wondering if Hagrid was visiting his dragon.

**XxX**

**D**aphne was a strong headed girl, she has to be to survive unscathed in Slytherin were you had to continuously battle for dominance and power, the most prominent figures really fight to establish their dominance over others just because they could use that power in the future, so be it in the job or favours, the kind depending greatly of how great was your debt.

So far Malfoy has the most powerful grip in the house thanks to his father who controlled a great deal in the Wizengamot and other areas; nothing seemed too far away from Lucius hand even sacking Dumbledore.

People wanted to believe that the old wizard was undefeatable and irreplaceable but that was really far away from the truth, Dumbledore was a masterful politician even if he didn't wanted to admit it. Lucius and a few others had tried to increase the pureblood propaganda in the Wizengamot and would have succeeded entirely if not for the old man reducing their complete victory to a partial one.

Sadly being the head of the Wizengamot doesn't mean that you could actually command said body as you pleased or need, that's a load of crap if you ask her, even when you are the head you need your propositions to be voted on to be approved, you had to fight and propose, win the other members to your cause to gain votes, so even if you are the head of the magical parliament you needed a strong support behind you to make your propositions legal.

He had tried, he certainly did, but he wasn't the only one with power in the legislature, Malfoy was one of the many rivals that Dumbledore has to defeat to gain votes and he doesn't always end's up winning said struggles.

The Mugwump position was the same; it was a congregation of communities that will propose and vote over certain points not always ending on a positive note thanks to the difference between the cultures and points of view. The disaster of Liechtenstein, the Trolls and Pierre Bonaccord, was a fine example of this clash of cultures and how fruitless could this gatherings result.

Even as a Headmaster Dumbledore was under surveillance of the Board of Governors and of course Malfoy who was a member of said board. That´s why Draco has so much free way in the dungeon, sadly for him his campaign of dominance over others had failed spectacularly outside the Slytherin house and mostly thanks to his obsession over Harry Potter.

He always put his attention on demeaning Potter believing that if he had the boy under his power then the rest could easily fold to his will. How idiotic of him, Potter was probably the figure head of the Gryffindor house, but it was glaringly obvious he wasn't the most powerful politically or socially adept in the house, the Weasley had monopolized Gryffindor for decades, beginning with William and ending with the Twins.

Ron lacked the drive and the means to control the house, and the sister was an unknown element so far, only being noticed by her looks rather than her merits, but you could still be dominant with that if it was used well but she doubted greatly that the girl would degrade herself like that.

The Weasley were depicted as fools by more powerful families for a lot of reasons, the fact that they couldn't be bought or bribed was just one of them, and an asset that can't be controlled wasn't an asset at all, it was a liability.

That doesn't mean that they were perfect, all humans had vices, some little other not so much, she was too young to know what were the vices of the older brothers, (She didn't even existed when the first bloke, William ended his Hogwarts career.) but of Percy, the twins, Ron and Ginny she knew.

Percy was a really easy fool, eager to please and ascend in the political power, you just needed to put him in a position were he would believe himself to be of importance when he was not, the perfect scape goat that will take the blame for you and not find it until it was too late.

The twins were harder, but they were a challenge that some of the Slytherins wanted to resolve, so far the only thing that seemed to be their vice was their pranks, but she suspected that their actions were much more profound than that. Her informants seemed to find that they actually were good enough to bring banned items to the school, In fact just reading the list of the caretaker would make you see how much of those products were in fact creation of the Weasley.

So they seemed to be trying to create a business similar to that of Zonko's, so to gain power over them you needed to make an investment, again something hard to do, but that's why the twins were so attractive to some of the more open minded Slytherins, both boys had what appears to be an solid future that could easily become profitable. So to gain their confidence you needed to play over their egos and probably their libidos to gain access to them. Sadly, that option seemed covered by some of the girls in the house of Gryffindor.

Not easy, but they was a possibility if you played your cards well.

Ginny was still a blank card, her popularity seems to increase with every new year thanks to her looks, but so far she was an above average student only being good at potions and Charms. She still could be used thanks to her temper; easily angered people were really useful if you used their ire against them and were good enough to defend or evade them.

Her crush on Potter was a liability that could be exploded too, sadly for her the bloke seemed to be on a relationship with the Lovegood gal, something that greatly displeased some of the most powerful figures in Slytherin and Ravenclaw. Especially that bitch of the Li family.

It seemed that the Li family scion was slowly ostracising some girls in the Ravenclaw tower, Lovegood alongside Turpin and Brocklehurst was one of the more alienated girls in the house, sadly only Lovegood lacked the friends to rely on like the others seemed to have, but that had changed this year and that seemed to annoy Li Su greatly. The fact that she couldn't make a sudden move and risk to break her mask of uncomfortable shy girl, a image that put her in a position were she could deal with emotionally unstable girls that tried to find comfort with her as a friend unknowing that she had other intentions on mind that will cost them their freedom in the future.

Returning to Ginny, she seemed close to Longbottom, but so far the girl still pinned for Potter even when it was glaringly obvious that the Longbottom boy was interested in her, lately they seemed close but nothing revealed a change in their relationship, and rumours said that she was becoming close to Corner another Ravenclaw. So nothing can be confirmed till she made her move.

So far only her temper seemed to be her weakness.

At that leaved her with Ronald, who so far was so easy to use that it was almost pitiful, the boy clearly had problems with his temper and load of self loathing, especially after whatever happened that night.

Sadly you could only gain information out of him by being close to him, mostly gaining his confidence something that he don't share easily even when he was with Potter. So when the boy began to visit the kitchen her usual spot to hide from the pressures of Slytherin power struggles, she began to gain some of his trust, not enough for him to call her a friend, an acquaintance barely but that was slowly changing.

After that night even when her plans were close to fail completely she saw a spark of hope when he didn't shun her, so she began to get close to him, to get to know him and of course be the friend he desperately needed.

It was a slow process that she was careful to deal with, she couldn't push him too much because he would clam on her, and her relationship will degrade quickly, so she was careful getting to know him first with him getting only what she wanted him to know about her.

The third night after he returned with his hand in a really bad shape with the words "_I should obey my betters,_" her façade failed completely and before she knew, she was truly getting to like the idiot as a friend, Dipsy seemed to approve, and both of them proceeded to cure the boy with the best of their ability.

She learned that night that Granger was a no-no subject with him, and any kind of inquire would upset him greatly making him distant and cold, something that bothered her greatly.

She was becoming rather distant of her only friend thanks to her need to gain access to Potter; Tracy didn't understand or knew why she needed to do this, and disapproved greatly of her actions, the fact that she now was not there to help her repel some of the boys advances was putting a great deal of stress between the two, but sadly Tracy wasn't the one that was a few months of becoming a sex slave.

Sadly even when he was clearly upset with Potter and Granger, his lips were still sealed and he never told her anything good or bad about them, he used to curse or mutter in his breath when he was cooking but so far nothing important to her.

That's other of the big surprises of the boy; he wasn't a great cook at first with his most prominent dish being his onion soup. The other's being just above average in flavour and presentation. But Dipsy was slowly making advances on him in the area; with methods that she notices she could use herself on him and other men.

It seemed that he was the kind of man that had great issues with his self-confidence, always doubting himself, never believing that he was capable enough and more precisely, never good enough to anything remarkable like other males of his age.

Dipsy treated him with a soft hand, slowly guiding him but not controlling him to make him do the work, with a few encouragement words and a rain of praises after he actually made it. She inflated his ego and then deflated it with a few words to make him more humble about his accomplishments.

So far the boy was clay in the hands of the elf, and she was most than glad to shape him in what the elves considered a good wizard. Daphne in the other hand quickly noticed that the boy was just above average in the magical department when he was receiving some classes from Dipsy.

His work on charms was good, she had to admit that he had the power to learn but not the initiative to use said spells in an innovative way like an excellent charm caster would do. (Like Granger even when the girl wasn't aware of this), he lacked the patience to use transfiguration appropriately, he wasn't all that good at potions, and it was more than obvious that he didn't take too seriously Divination or History of Magic. In Herbology he could handle himself well enough, maybe it has something to do with were and how he was raised, she assumed that they had a farm to sustain themselves like they had with such a huge family and a poor income. He wasn't in the level of Longbottom, but he certainly had a future there if he applied himself.

He wasn't really good with the animals; in fact he was clearly not interested in them and seemed to have an amount of fear for some of them. In the end Ron was the kind of student that was good at practice but horrid at theory a common trend in the student population.

So far he was her only playable card and even when she was really getting to know the boy he was a meaning to an end.

Sadly her conviction seemed to be faltering lately when she was dealing with him; it was gratifying to be with a boy that didn't try to get in her pants. (At least not when he was pretty afraid of what she could do to him if he even think about it.) He was so far away from the boys of Slytherin that he was refreshing.

He was amenable when he wanted to be, friendly when you gained his trust, but most of all he was the kind of boy who's bark was more dangerous than his bite. Once you know how to deal with his temper it was easy to make him see your point, at least to her that has a domineering nature like her father.

She opened the door to the kitchen greeting Weasley who was again in the tender care of Dipsy ignoring the shadow that was behind her seeing everything with an amused smile on apparently finding the information too good to ignore it.

**XxX **

**H**arry was angry, mostly because someone or more especially Umbridge has been reading his mail, mostly because said attempt ended up with Hedwig on a bad shape and because Sirius call was more than compromised. He couldn't contact Sirius before the meeting happened so he had to prevent him during the fire call.

That night he and Hermione were studying late, with Ron again ignoring them like his life depended on it, not that it mattered to him with the security of Sirius on hand, when they were alone and then Sirius appeared he rushed immediately to the fire.

"Padfoot Umbridge read the letter; you need to cut the call now!" He said desperately seeing the surprise in the eyes of his godparent when a hand tried to take a hold of him after the words of his godson, he barely escaped but it was more than clearly that this was a conversation that was probably being heard by the woman if the sudden intrusion was proof enough.

Harry cursed and before he knew it launched a hex at the fire making the logs explode in a shower of ashes and fire, his hand burned in the process along some of his clothes, Hermione immediately chastised him while she tried to see how much he has hurt himself. Both now ignoring how in the shadows Ron looked at the scene before he quickly receded into them and disappeared into the dormitory with something to think about what he has seen.

**XxX **

**D**ays passed and the situation with Ron wasn't much different, he didn't seemed that miserable now, in fact he was slowly too slowly for him returning to his old self, sadly without their help, something that seemed to annoy Ginny and disappoint Neville if their looks mean something.

Luna for her part was more interesting in the sudden interest of Su li on her persona, the girl has never before approached her, and in fact she could clearly see that she wasn't the person she was portraying to be. Even before she acquired Persephone she has a six sense that usually let her see beyond all pretences, something that has diminished a little now more integrated to her instincts of self preservation.

The fact that the girl seemed to put herself alongside girls that were usually broken and mistreated like she used to be put on fire her sense of self preservation.

The fact the she was seen with McLaggen was other reason for why she didn't trusted at all in the girl. That she constantly tried to make her see her see the light over Harry wasn't of any help to Li either. So she put an end to her diatribe and immediately proceeded to ignore her from that point on, something that seemed to annoy and infuriate her greatly.

In fact she was using her senses to protect herself now, knowing that some people in Ravenclaw didn't accept the rejection too well. But so far the girl seemed to keep her distance but not her interest if the attempt to approach her of Mandy and Lisa, two of her close friends said something.

The following days were pretty much the same with Harry and Hermione, they would study, and Harry would make an attempt on Ron just to be ignored again. He told them of how difficult the Quidditch training was with the day being rainy and cold, Ron seemed to be okay in his position, in fact he seemed to be letting a lot of anger flow into his game making his deflecting abilities more effective when he focused on beating them back. The praise he gained from Angelina seemed to do him a great deal of good, but Harry knew that that anger was fuelled by something more.

Later the next day he told them about a room that Dobby has told him about, one that could be used to finally unite their study group, when they inspected the room, they were impressed, but Luna knew that she needed to say the obvious even knowing that they will not like it.

"This is a great room one that we can use for ourselves, but it's too good for what we are trying to do, especially with the amount of people we have on this group, some of them we might trust on, but not the others, they will blab about this even if we take some precautions, only a full pledge to our cause would maintain the secret, but asking for one when we are only creating a study group it's too much and it will put the wrong attention on us."

"Then where can we reunite?" Asked Hermione now truly seeing her point, she had something on her mind to prevent a betrayal, but they could still be betrayed if said precautions were not permanent as if lethal, something that she wasn't ready to do.

Harry finally said after thinking for a while, "We can use the old class rooms, one of them had to be enough for now, and we could ask Dobby to be a sentinel for us, preventing and misleading possible intruders for enough time for us to escape."

Luna looked at him, proud that he was slowly beginning to think for himself rather than depend on his friends as he had been doing for four and a half years, they was still a long road to go, but it was a change that she wanted to live and see for herself.

Hermione nodded, "Apparently only Dobby it's at our disposition, I am not popular with the elves for obvious reasons, and only Ron seemed to be in a good position with them to ask them for favours." She looked sadly at the floor, still harbouring a feeling of guilt over what she has done. Luna sighed seeing that Harry was frowning in annoyance and frustration over the theme on Ron, apparently riding the same car that Hermione.

She finally said, "We can't approach him just because we need him; he means more than that to us, we are going to count on Dobby and hope that Ron finally let us apologise for our mistake."

Both nodded at her, apparently appreciating her words, she smiled at them, taking their hands and squeezing as hard as it was possible with her tiny hands. Slowly putting a little of her power for them to absorb, they smiled and promptly give her back a similar amount of power making her smile beautifully at them.

In the end they planned the reunion to be the next night and slowly passed the notice. Hoping that Ron would assist, and give them another opportunity to made amends with him.

**XxX **

"**A**nd how do you expect Potter, that this little gathering will help us with our qualifications," asked Michael Corner after Harry finally ended his introductory speech. Harry for his part nodded breathing slowly to control his nerves before he began to speak again. "A good question, as we can see not only fifth years are present, some sixth and even seventh years students are here, we can use that to our benefit."

Johansen Phineas one Hufflepuff seventh year present finally asked. "How so Potter, I can only see a benefit for the years below us." Montgomery Isabella other Hufflepuff seventh year student nodded, her hand subtlety caressing the one of Phineas Harry immediately noticed, knowing that they probably just joined in a fit of curiosity.

Harry smiled knowing that they probably would like what he was to say, "By getting living targets where you could actually practice your non lethal spells, charms, jinxes and hexes." He was raising his voice to make sure that everyone listened to his words even when they exploded in a show of indignation, especially his peers.

"This is preposterous Potter," Screamed Marietta, slowly backed up with other people thinking the same. Then a loud bang was heard, curiously from behind the stands just from the position where the Weasley twins were.

Fred has his wand raised, slightly smoking while George smiled knowingly.

"Harry our dear friend; you are aware that we are going to use this to our amusement right?" The black haired teen nodded before he explained at his now terrorized peers.

"By doing this, we should learn about how to evade, block and redirect certain spells, nothing teach better than practice, seventh years are the more advanced students here, they have knowledge that we could gladly use in the future, knowledge that we would have not access for in our current years, they need to practice seeing that – Madam Umbridge, doesn't seem interested in practical teaching, they would get experience and we could learn before hand to not only evade or to cast a good shield like our – estimated professor wants, but we would have at least a forewarning of what it's to come in the incoming years, so we could have in theory an easier approach to what seems it's a rather stressful future subject."

He could see that some of them had seem his point and were really interested, specially those in Ravenclaw, the seventh years on the other side were thinking over it, gladly Angelina voiced a really good question, "What kind of spells and jinxes can we use?"

Harry smiled, "Everything that it's not lethal to use," Again some mutterings crossed the old class room.

"Even stunners?" asked Isabella the black haired girl of Hufflepuff that was alongside Phineas. Harry nodded explaining himself quickly to avoid another loss of time by controlling the mutterings.

"They are usually taught to fifth and six years, so seeing that we aren't receiving that education and that stunners are still part of our OWLs, we need to practice them urgently, I would gladly serve as a dummy if you later can teach me how to use the spell or jinx you used on me, I will not only learn how to use them, but how to identify each one from the other, you for your part get a living target, a willing living target to practice with that would not hold a grudge at least I know that I will not, you get experience and the opportunity to refine your knowledge to a higher degree, I can guarantee that your qualifications at your NEWT will show the difference."

He could see that he has bought their entire attention, and even Hermione who initially was looking greatly annoyed at what he was saying take a sudden interest in this method now understanding the reasoning behind his words.

Luna seemed to be smiling proudly at him, and he finally understood that she was guiding him to be more independent than before, to reach a conclusion by himself without the need or the nagging of a brown-haired friend to do so.

The twins were twitching in barely contained emotion; Ron that for his surprise did come was looking at him thoughtfully before he noticed that he was looking back and evaded his sight. He smiled a little knowing that he had made a step in the right direction with the redheaded boy.

"Then let's begin, can seventh years come here please?"

**XxX**

**A**fter a the class and a few hexes Harry was still smiling brightly about the experience, yes it was painful and sometimes embarrassing thanks to the twins, but he at least got the point across the entire group who seemed to accept this method even if a little reticent about it.

Ginny on the other hand approached him and asked, "Harry can we speak please?" He nodded, Luna noticing this tried to take Hermione away for a while believing that Ginny might want a little privacy, just to receive a surprise when the red head girl stopped them. "No, please I want you to be here too, I need it."

Behind her was Neville who was apparently just there to support the redhead.

"OK I am all ears," Said Harry, she nodded and after a rather long inhalation, she asked.

"Why are you still trying to make peace with Ron? I thought that without him to court Hermione you would be – pleased to not have to fight over her with him." She seemed a little spiteful, and he didn't blame her entirely, after all she was a woman and the idea of a man having two girls should be uncomfortable to her. Especially with how she has been raised believing that true love was among a man and a woman, two and only that, anything more was mostly frowned upon.

Harry pondered her inquiry for a while before he looked at her and said, "I will not deny that it would in fact be easier yes, but what we did was still inexcusable even if we can actually explain it rationally. It was a betrayal of his trust and that's unpardonable for us, especially to me." He sighed and continued, "It's so easy to let the anger control you, to let the hate domain your actions and your life. I could just admit defeat to these feelings and let them control me like _HE_ did." Ginny gasped and he knew that she knew about who he was speaking about, but seeing that Neville and probably the girls were thinking that he was talking about Ron he clarified.

"Of all my friends Ginny, only you could share with me the horrid experience of seeing face to face the monster that calls himself Voldemort." He closed his eyes not wanting to see their expressions and willing himself to go on, "you and I got to see how he was when he was a student like us. But we know that he was a student on the outside and a monster on the inside, he was so filled with hatred and loathing, he let this emotions control and define him because they were making him stronger, he used all his gifts just to fuel this hatred to the point that it twisted him into a the monster we all know and that adults try to pretend that doesn't exist, incapable of trust or mercy, he existed only to himself and for himself, others were just expendable means to get what he wanted." He saw Ginny who was trembling slightly, then at Neville who was pale. Luna seemed contemplative and proud of what he was doing, Hermione was worried but she had a tiny smile on her lips already understanding what he was trying to say.

"I want to believe that I am better than that, that I am not like _him_, that I am better than _him_, it's not easy, sometimes is so tempting to let them held my life and explode at others just to feel less miserable, to imprint suffering in others to diminish my own. I don't want to be like that in any sense. That's why I want to reconcile with Ron if he let me the chance to apologise and prove that I can still be a good friend and can amend for what I have done."

Hermione added, "For what we have done," She finally let her guilt go, knowing that suffering for that wouldn't change what happened, a new look of determination in her face. Luna nodded, and then she looked at the slightly opened door seeing and hearing a small sob there, she smiled knowing that Ron has been eavesdropping when he noticed that Ginny wasn't parting with the others, she gave him at least a warning to leave, "We should go to our dormitories, Umbridge will hear sooner or later about this gathering and will try to catch us while we are 'erasing' the proof of the reunion itself."

She heard more than see that Ron was quickly going away, and hoped that by doing this he at least would give them another chance when he was prepared for it.

After controlling herself, Ginny nodded before she asked, "When are you going to tell him about the possibility of him being a – a cat?" Luna opened slightly her eyes, being grateful that Ron was now far away from the abandoned classroom. That wasn't information that he should know by eavesdropping.

Harry said, "I intend to corral him after the game against Slytherin, at least to tell him about the possibility."

Neville finally asked apparently nervous, "Harry you told me that he was probably 'infected' by a single pinch of blood when you two had your err- row. Could it be that Malfoy and his goons are infected too for what Ron did?"

Harry seemed to think for a while before he said, "No, Ron was infected because the ambience was highly charged with the essence of the girls, when we err, are… it's." He was saved by Luna who was known for being honestly blunt. Inconspicuously she casted a few charms on the door to prevent eavesdropping.

"What Harry can't say it's that when we mate, we expel some of our magical power, this let's call it 'charge'. Remains in the air creating an invisible cocoon around us and said covering it's used to spark and create the Thundercats, when Ron entered this Bubble he was in a highly charged environment that's basically the basis of our ritual to create a cat. Ron was a blank sheet so he was a potential host that the cats couldn't ignore, that's the power. Now we need a conduct, that's it's usually Harry's seed-"

"LUNA!" Said Hermione now almost on the verge of losing consciousness by how much blood was rushing to her head, Ginny and Neville seemed close to her too, Harry for the other part was obviously trying to ignore the subtle stares that the redhead was throwing at him.

Luna continued deciding to ignore Hermione for the time, "his seed, we know that men's create the life and we the female nurture it for nine months, this substance has a great value in some potions and rituals because it can create the spark of life,"

Ginny suddenly was a little green, "Harry tell me the truth, you and my brother di-"

"NO, sorry but err no I swear." He answered hastily losing some of the colour in his face. Ginny looked at Luna who serenely waited for the interruption to end and continued. "You did share something with him Harry,-"

Harry frowned, while the rest seemed uncomfortable with the idea, especially Neville who was wondering if he could Obliviate the images that were on his head against his will. Luna ignoring the discomfort continued, "Harry did share something with Ron, but not his – LUNA! Interrupted Harry again, and she sighed and omitted that part just to end with this. – He shared another conduit of Life, this time not one that share the spark, but most mainly maintain life itself functioning, his blood even if it was an small amount served to the Purposes of the ritual and they passed some of their power onto Ron, creating a spark and the possibility of a Thundercat."

Neville finally got it, "So when Ron punched the mickey out of Malfoy-"

Luna nodded, "He didn't have the requisites to pass the spark, even if he had a rela-"

Harry hastily interrupted her, "OK Luna we understand, PLEASE you don't need to be graphic about that."

Ginny seeing that they were all prepared to leave asked one last question, "What I don't understand is that at first this seemed more spiritual when Harry described his experience, why the change?"

Hermione answered her, "The creation of a Thundercat has three stages for what I saw with Luna and me, first it's the creation of the spirit, the soul of the beast, then when you add power a body for this soul it's made, lastly a mind probably the most complex and tiring event. We needed a lot of energy to reach this stage. You need to understand that they are living beings, not just an entity, they need a host to live, but they are still a living being they are just more complex than just a simple spirit that gives you power."

The redhead nodded before they all parted leaving no trace behind that Umbridge could use against them.

**XxX**

**H**arry finally captured the snitch ending the game with an overwhelming defeat over Slytherin thanks to Ron abilities as a keeper. Harry knew that his reflexes were getting better thanks to the spark, and couldn't evade the sinking emotion that he was feeling at the moment knowing that the boy would not take that lightly.

He ignored the now incensed Malfoy and tried to reach Ron before the blond committed a huge mistake; thankfully his brothers seemed to notice the prick intentions and hastily took away their brother from the pitch to the showers, singing and praising the entire road with the help of his team companions.

The blond entered the pit and seemed to be vexed by said action, Harry deciding to take a page from the Twins ignored him completely even when he heard the commentary about his mother. He wanted to show him his ire, but knew that he could end up killing Malfoy easily if he lose even a little of his control over Jäger who after the situation with Ron has been silent.

Of course that that didn't meant that he wasn't there, Oh yes he was there, looking, waiting and judging. He was just waiting for him to call his power like he had done in the past, and he knew that he will use him sooner or later, but if he has to, it would be against Voldemort, not an idiot like Draco Malfoy who was clearly trying to create problems. When he reached the Gryffindor section he noticed that the Twins were there waiting for him.

George said, "We don't know what happened between you and Ronniekins but now it's not the time to speak with him like you want to."

Harry was immediately on guard, George noticed this and waved his hand, "You don't need to stress yourself, we actually knew that this was about to happen sooner or later, it was just a matter of time."

Fred continued interrupting Harry again, "We aren't that blind; I can assure you that our dear mother had noticed it too, it was pretty obvious." Harry blanched when he heard this, George for his part continued, "We actually don't know what to do, we have pretty much hexed you already and you were even willing to receive it. But we can't ignore that you and Ron are having a spat over a girl."

"Hermione," Said Fred, and Harry could actually feel his stomach drop like a stone, he nodded feeling ashamed of being found by them.

"I, we-" both men quickly stopped him, confounding him immediately.

George finally said, "We can't judge you Harry, especially when we are aware that you are in a ménage a tri-" Harry immediately put his hand on the mouth of George, knowing that everybody could have heard that. Fred for his part smiled and continued, "We can't judge you when we are in a similar situation with the girls," Harry opened his eyes upon hearing this never expecting that.

The Twins smiled in unison, "Of course that if you reveal this, and we will jinx your privates to fall apart in a slow but painfully way."

Fred losing the smile finally said, "We are giving you another chance because we have seen that you have tried to make amends with Ron, and because of that we will not interfere. But take notice that if you hurt him again." Both Weasley were looking at him with a rather penetrating stare, he nodded understanding the not so hidden menace.

"I swear that I will do my best to make amends with Ron."

They nodded and both leaved Harry alone while they were subtlety going to the girl's showers. Harry looked in their direction for a while before he looked at the door, sighed and entered only to find that Ron wasn't there.

He sighed, slightly cursing the twins.

**XxX **

**D**aphne has a little smile on her face, who knew that the Idiot could actually play that well, it seemed that he had some hidden facets that she had never bothered to search before.

On her left hand was a bottle of cuisine red whine, it was a present for Weasley for his performance knowing that this would probably open the boy a little more with her.

She was about to touch the pear when a hand suddenly grabbed her mouth and began to drag her to the shadows. Startled she dropped the bottle and tried to fight only to receive a punch on her stomach that nearly knocked her out.

She saw that it was Goyle who had punched her and knew that the one that was seizing her was Crabbe; she cursed herself for how she had lessened her attention to such a low level that these imbeciles had surprised her. She tried to reach her wand but the voice that she was so afraid to hear finally made its appearance.

"Look what we got here, a Blood-traitor, tsk, tsk, tsk, Dear Daphne; you have been a bad girl, a really dirty and despicable bad girl." The voice of Malfoy was barely containing his contempt, she knew that she was in serious problems when he was in one of his bad moods, and being humiliated by the Gryffindors one more time had probably put him on the edge.

He looked at her, his eyes cold and calculating, he seemed to be wondering what to do with her when the sound of steps resounded in the badly illuminated passage, putting a smile on his face. "It's seems that the Weasel it's coming to see you, what a lovely match you two made, but my, my, aren't you a promised woman Daphne, such a dirty girl. We should show you the difference between a blood-traitor like the Weasel and a true pure-blooded man like us. Take her to the point guys; use the brooms to get there quickly. Zabini can only buy us half an hour before anyone notices our absence, more than enough to teach _dear_ Daphne a lesson."

She tried to protest and resist but her attempts ended when Goyle punched her much harder in the stomach, making her loose her conscience.

Crabbe put the unconscious girl on his shoulder before he asked, "What about the Weasel?"

Draco smiled, "Don't worry about it, he will obey us if he value Daphne like we think he does, now go, the big oaf isn't at Hogwarts to catch us entering at the Forbidden forest, and Grubbly-plank doesn't wander inside of it so we are relatively safe in the spot."

"And what happens if we find a couple at the spot?" Asked Goyle, gaining a frown from Draco, "You take them away you idiot, don't let anyone see Daphne by any means."

And with just that both boys parted hastily on their brooms, carefully to not be found by the caretaker or someone else. They soon vanished in the shadows.

Malfoy for his part waited for a few seconds before he heard the voice of the blood-traitor when he found the mess Daphne created with that cheap bottle of red wine. He sneered disdainfully at the memory.

"Hello it's somebody there? Greengrass are you there?" Malfoy smiled seeing that the idiot wasn't even in a first name basis with the traitor, how delightful, they haven't really consumed the relationship before she was send to Honk Kong like the slave she was destined to be.

"Hello Weasel,"

The redhead was immediately on guard, how laughable; he thinks that he can actually win a fight against him. "Ah, ah, ah, I wouldn't do that if I where you Weasel, you don't want Dear Daphne to suffer do you?" That certainly got his attention, he literally growled at him. "Such a fitting response of an animal like you, I would calm myself you really, really don't want to anger me and make the girl suffer more than she had."

He had to blink two times, almost swearing that the eyes of the blood-traitor had glowed for a second, he ignored such occurrence as a simple product of his imagination. "If you want her to leave this unscathed, surrender your wand immediately." He seemed to doubt a little but he could see that he was troubled by his words, and with a slow and deliberate movement he launched his wand at the floor, obeying without too much protest. '_Good, the first part has reached its conclusion, now for the Main show._'

"Walk in front of me Weasel, don't make a sound, don't try anything else or you will suffer much more than the blood-traitor."

"If you hurt her I swear I-"

"You what, you seem to not understand completely the situation before you, so I will not elucidate more than this, obey or she pays the price."

He obeyed immediately after that, He got his wand and pocketed it on a hidden pocket of his Slytherin green cloak, in a matter of minutes they were in the Forbidden forest, in a especial place that Slytherin seventh years enchanted to be comfy and secure to held a gathering, of course mostly used by those couples that needed to scratch an itch lately thanks to how the school had been allowing them free way this last months.

In fact when they finally reached the spot the girl was partially naked in the arms of Crabbe, she finally was awake and seemed to have regained her fighting spirit when Goyle began to undress her.

Of course the Weasel immediately leaped in to save her when he raised his wand and focusing a little finally casted his first unforgivable, "Crucio!" The blood-traitor received the surprisingly draining spell on his back with an agonizing scream. It wasn't complete and it seemed that it lacked force, but to Draco it was a complete success even if he was feeling really drained right now.

Daphne to their surprise immediately screamed, "NO, WEASLEY, RON." Even she seemed surprised at her outburst; Goyle for his part just punched her on the face when she tried to bite his hand.

The redhead for his part seemed to be trembling, Draco monopolized this, "Look at your saviour _dear_ Daphne, trembling like the coward he is. Such a bad taste you have I must say, but let's correct that don't we. Goyle teach this redhead trash what happens when you try to reach too high." The boy immediately complied giving a kick to the head of the traitor who recoiled back thanks to the force behind it, Draco smiled hearing the grunting of the boy while Daphne was beginning to sob in desperation at what was about to happen. The blond approached her, his intent clear on his eyes, Daphne tried once more to fight but Crabbe had a strong hold of her.

"Hold her still Crabbe, I want to enjoy this." He reached for her undergarments, tearing them apart in one single push enjoying the scream of terror of the girl while the Weasel screamed to leave her alone.

He looked in the direction of Weasley seeing that he was barely struggling with Goyle; in fact he seemed to be trembling more than before. "Goyle grab his head, I want him to see with his own eyes how I take his tramp." He looked at the girl who was sobbing and trying to cross her legs in vain. He reached with his hand and forcedly introduced two of his fingers gaining a shriek of pain and desperation from her.

"I told you that you will remember the day you opposed to me, _Dear_ Daphne, and I assure you that I will enjoy crushing you like the insect that you are,"

"Malfoy Please…"

"Oh I will please you, just like I was about to please Davis."

She immediately stiffened with that, Draco sneered, "Such a good friend, you see when she was refusing to tell us what she was hiding from us we took this to the next level knowing that she had a big secret on you. So when Goyle torn her clothes apart she began to sing like a canary and what glorious notes she could reach, she brought her freedom with information. She literally screamed what we wanted to know about you and your secret escapades to the kitchen with Weasley of all people, you see we can't permit you to soil the good name of Slytherin by consorting with such a lowlife so we had to take measures about it. So thanks to your dear friend taking away the attention for a few minutes, we could have this quality time, sadly I am afraid that it has to end soon, you see-" He was suddenly interrupted by a loud crack behind his back, he instantly looked in the direction of the sound only to find a barely twitching Goyle in the hands of a now glowing Weasley, who dropped the now death boy on the floor.

"Weasley what the bloody- AGH" In a matter of seconds the glowing increased to a blinding degree making Draco recoil slightly, he cursed not knowing what spell the redhead had used to blind him, he was listening to a nauseating cracking sound accompanied by some gurgles from the clearly mad redhead. He was about to launch a curse when a roar finally resounded in the ambience stopping his heart for a second in a sudden rush of panic.

When the light faded out, before him was a monstrosity, only for the colour of the fur he knew that it was a tiger, but this tiger was clearly not normal it was in his hind legs and seemed humanoid, he backed off gaining the attention of the beast who in a single leap reached him, he tried to scream in terror but the air was violently expulsed out of his body, he looked in the direction of the beast now completely terrified.

He tried to plead when his chest was brutally shattered open by claws tearing flesh and bones like they were mere paper, he gurgled a bunch of blood instead of a scream when he literally saw the beast devour him or more precisely his magic, growing in shape and apparently in force. He died when the beast finished his feast now looking at a paralyzed Crabbe who was still holding a now screaming Daphne.

In two single leaps the beast took ripping apart Crabbe's arm slightly hurting the girl in the process. Sadly she was in shock the moment she touched the ground seeing the monster repeat the horrid show with now a screaming Crabbe.

When he finished he threw the body away like a sack of potatoes and looked at her who was still too terrified to even move, the beast was looking at her, examining her, judging her, finally reaching a conclusion he began to walk in her direction, fearing for the worst and overwhelmed by fear Daphne simply lost consciousness knowing that this was her end.

The beast for his part took her on his arms and began to walk in the opposite direction of the school quickly disappearing into the forest.

**TBC **


	12. Chapter 12

**L**una ignored the hard and murderous gazes of the girls that were surrounding her, mostly because this situation could have been prevented if they let their childish behaviour behind. But it seemed that Li Su was simply too accustomed to be obeyed to the letter, so when Luna began to ignore her suggestions and offerings of friendship and companionship, the apparently timid Chinese Ravenclaw didn't like it at all.

"I want her expelled professor," Yelled in indignation the now bald Turpin, hitting the desk of the diminutive professor with her hands to put an emphasis on her demand, alongside her was Mandy Brocklehurst who had her arm on a conjured cast probably broken until the nurse got a hold on her, (Because it seemed that this was more important that receiving medical attention.) In the shadows of the room was non other that Su of the Li family, looking at the blond witch with a cold and calculative gaze, almost re-evaluating what she knew of her so far.

Luna on the other hand was comfortable under the chair that the diminutive man had conjured for them, only her taking his offering while the others were on their feet's, mostly believing that this would be a fast gathering.

Flitwick on the other hand was looking at the fuming girl with a calm and collected gaze, almost examining the magical damage over her head instead of the words of the girl itself. Finally and probably because he got tired of the girl's voice he asked, "When and how did Miss Lovegood curse you if I might know, Miss Turpin."

Turpin immediately shut her mouth, not knowing what to say when Brocklehurst added, "She cursed us in our room, we where only trying to be friendly and then she cursed us just because we told her how Potter was such a detriment to her future career."

Flitwick looked at the girls with a passive gaze, looking them for a few seconds before his eyes were put over Li. "It's this true, Miss Li?" Said girl nodded, and Luna could see that she was trying to hide a smirk while hiding in the shadows of the room, a reaction that quickly disappeared once the gaze of the teacher was put entirely on her.

After examining them for a few more seconds, Flitwick finally put her gaze on the blonde, his face as neutral as he could, "Miss Lovegood, these are serious accusations, what do you have to say in your favour?"

Luna just smiled, "I am Honoured Professor," This seemed to take everyone by surprise, especially Su, who for a tiny second seemed to loose her calculative posture. Flitwick on the other hand was curious, "Why do you think so Miss Lovegood?"

Brocklehurst was looking at the girl as if she had lost her mind even Turpin seemed to think similarly. Luna for her part just smiled for a while before saying.

"Well Professor, my companions here seems to believe that I am so proficient in my casting that I can curse them even when I am not present. I am sincerely honoured sir."

Flitwick looked at her for a few seconds before he added, "So you are saying that you weren't there Miss Lovegood, how it's that even possible when these girls are claiming specifically that you were the cause of their misfortune."

"That it's an interesting question, because like you I am curious to know how I was capable of cursing them a few moments ago when I was seen on the Gryffindor stand alongside Granger Hermione cheering for my boyfriend. My curiosity it's without ill intent of course, but you see I am curious of how I did so I could try it again, this ability could breach a new branch of magic in our world, just think of the possibilities." The man nodded, seeing that the girl had made point and of course noticing how Brocklehurst flinched while Turpin backed off a little.

He was curious thought, those were really well placed curses, and in fact thanks to his heritage he could certainly see the signature of Lovegood everywhere, he was about to ask when the strange blond itself added, "But, perhaps the misfortune of my colleagues would have been evaded if they had not tried to break the protections that were placed on my belongings sir, I myself am curious to know why they had feel the need to…"

Su finally decided to add something, "Because we are Ravenclaws and we do not back off from a dare, much less when you openly leave one for us to decipher, and I don't and never will surrender until I break and dominate my objective, Lovegood." She was looking directly at the blond, who was openly ignoring her like she wasn't there, something that greatly annoyed her and the others.

Luna for her part maintained her calm, even when she knew that the words of the girl had a more profound meaning, she could see that Brocklehurst and Turpin were pretty much livid by the fact that she hasn't taken the offerings of Su Li, and were pretty much offended when she openly declared that she wasn't interested at all in a relationship between them, especially when they were so insistent of separating her from Harry.

Flitwick seeing that this was more complicated than what it seemed was about to reproach the obvious offenders when his door was rudely open from the outside, letting pass the odious being better know as Madam Umbridge, he immediately narrowed his eyes at the intrusion.

"Madam Umbridge, what a pleasant surprise," Luna could see that the man was barely containing his dislike to the woman, she for the other hand could smell, almost feel the ill intent of the horrid woman, but more than anything she could see the figure of Marietta Edgecombe trailing behind and knew that this was orchestrated.

She still maintained her calm, mostly because Persephone was raging for her; this was obviously planned, why? She wasn't really sure herself, but she knew that this was another attempt to get at Harry.

She saw her head of house discuss the problem with Umbridge only to be ignored completely; she knew that this was a lost cause when the woman quickly created another ministry regulation to get her hands on her, she knew at that moment that everything will change for the worst.

**XxX**

**G**inny was looking everywhere in the common room, but not mattering how much she looked between the partying Gryffindors, she couldn't find her brother, something that was slowly worrying her, this party was as much to her brother that it was for Harry, so he don't being here bathing on the well deserved attention was too out of character to him.

He had begged her to let him search for some refreshments In the Kitchen, to give him at least half and hour and he would be back with a lot of snacks to feast on. That was two hours ago, and her brother wasn't still in the common Room. She could see that the twins were slowly noticing the disappearance too, a quick glance in Harry's direction showed that he was becoming preoccupied by this situation. Hermione for her part was subtlety trying to calm him from this state; something that was if she was honest with herself, irking her greatly.

She ignored them, it was the only thing she could really do to conserve their friendship even if she was really displeased by they choice, (especially His), she constantly wondered if she would have done the same if she wasn't equally irked at her mother too, particularly the fact that she wasn't as accepting of the role that her mother expected her to fill without questions.

Like Hermione she didn't wanted to be a simple housewife, she loved Quidditch, even much more than all of her brothers, certainly much more than Bill, Charlie, the twins and Ron put together, but her mother had never approved of this dream, not when the Holyhead Harpies where held as flying whores in her opinion. (The posters that she had confiscated from the Twins didn't help to erase or change that idea.)

Then it was the fact that Harry has taken two girls to himself, not mattering the circumstances she wasn't going to share her love life like that, she would have been gladly transformed if he in the end was only hers and of no one else, she would never accept the deal that Hermione and Luna of all people had, it simply wasn't of her liking.

She sighed, now focusing her attention on the common room trying to find any sign of her lost relative, quickly noticing that the twins were now on the search too, she walked in their direction, cursing slightly that they were heading to Harry's direction. She didn't want to share too much with him lately, the pain was still too raw for her to ignore, she needed more time to deal with it, but sadly at this moment her feelings didn't mattered when something was obviously really wrong.

"Something's wrong," She heard Harry add, and she almost rolled her eyes at the obvious comment, George immediately said.

"Remember me to buy little Ronniekins a _map_ to prevent this from happening again Fred."

Fred closely continued, "Certainly oh brother of mine, we can't let the people believe that our little brother it's a _Marauder, _roaming in the halls of the school as he pleases." Both smiled subtlety seeing that the black haired boy was quickly going on to his room to get the implied item. Them they looked at their little sister who was doing whatever she could to ignore the obviously uncomfortable Hermione. Both keeping their mouths wisely close to prevent any possible damage from the girls.

Minutes later Harry returned with haste, the expression on his face saying too much for the Twins liking. Hurriedly they casted a private charms around them ignoring a few gasp from the eavesdroppers.

"What's happening Harry?" asked Hermione who saw the look on his face.

He looked at them, and said, "Something it's wrong, Ron doesn't appear in the map, I looked for the whole thing and his spot isn't in the school." He heard Ginny gasp and the Twins look aghast for a second, but before they asked for him he added. "Additionally Luna it's on Umbridge office, alone, while the toad is on the infirmary with Dumbledore, McGonagall, Pomfrey, Parkinson and Davis, something its happening."

Ginny hastily added, "We need to look for Ron, I have a bad feeling." Everyone nodded,

Harry took charge immediately, "We need to see if Luna's fine, let's divide, here take the map with you to find Ron while we rescue Luna." He passed the map to the Twins as inconspicuously as he could, nothing easy with so many people now looking at them.

"Wait Harry we can't take her out of her office like that, we-" Hermione opened her eyes suddenly, remembering a little detail that she had worked hard to ignore all this time. "I know how we can contact Luna, but I need time to do it." Harry nodded, before he looked at the twins, "Be careful, like Ginny I have a bad feeling too, something is not right."

The Twins nodded and took Ginny with them ending the unknown spell immediately and walked to the portrait, Harry looked at them for a few seconds before he took Hermione's hand and leaded her to his room knowing that a great deal of eyes were upon them. "Harry we can't-" She tried to say but he interrupted her on the spot. "Not now Hermione, please I really, really have a bad feeling about this," He was pensive for a moment before he added. "I know how we can stop the rumours, wait a second there."

She nodded ignoring the stares and whisperings; she looked at him with a tiny deal of trepidation hoping that her hunch was real, she saw to her relief that he was talking quietly with Neville probably asking him to come with them, even when a part of her still wanted to have some alone time with her best friend.

But those ideas were pushed aside to let her mind wander about Luna, more precisely the link they used to share in the past, she had done almost the impossible to ignore it, and the lost contact with the girl had diminished enormously the force between the two, but after that particular night the link has grown strong again, maybe strong enough to communicate with the blond girl and find what it's happening.

She looked at the boys, who were now hearing her hypothesis; Harry nodded remembering the deal while Neville was looking at the door preventing anyone else from intruding in the process.

She closed her eyes, trying to get a hold of the girl, failing at first, she had let the link almost go under her fears, and part of her was still afraid mostly because of her attraction to another girl, something that was completely new to her, yes she was sure that she liked Harry, and knew that she could even get to love him, she already did in a sense, but Luna was different, she had never before feel an attraction to a member of her own gender, she didn't knew if she could actually get to love Luna like she did with Harry, but she at least knew that she liked the girl, enough to let the almost non-existent link to reappear again on her mind making her gasp in glorious excitement then in Horror.

They needed to rescue Luna.

**XxX**

**S**he tried to struggle, she really did, but he was so strong and the feeling in the air was so alluring, she was feeling aroused, intrigued but most of all, she was terrified. She had woken up when she feel her neck being licked continuously by the beast, its tongue was raspy and strong, it was making her shiver in something more than simple fear.

She was terrified and hurt, her ribs were aching horridly and her crotch was burning her from the inside out, she recognized the symptoms, it seemed that Malfoy had used his fingers to rub a potion onto her body, most probably an aphrodisiac to make her lose her mind in the process, she gasped when she felt the sharp teeth's of this beast touch her neck again, she inhaled the strange essence that permeated the air, letting a moan escape her lips without her consent, she cursed the Malfoy line for putting her in this predicament.

She tried to break the contact between the two but that only seemed to make the beast increase his hold over her body, she wept, this wasn't happening this was a nightmare a horrible nightmare that would end soon.

She was feeling her magic react in a way that it has never before, it was twisting and changing inside her own body, with every new sniff of her part this feeling seemed to increase, to the point that she was almost losing her mind to every new sensation, then it come the bite, and her world exploded in a rush of euphoria and freedom like she had never feel before, her own hips trusting forward this monster just to get much more.

She cursed Malfoy now more than ever seeing that the potion was slowly eroding her mind to the pleasures of the flesh, then the beast released her, and she was felling hollow, incomplete like something was missing in this deal. She knew that she had lost her mind to the sensations when she initiated more contact with the beast, she wanted more, she needed it, and seeing the body of this… were-tiger, and how he was approaching her, she knew that she was about to get it.

Then she screamed at the skies, in a mix of euphoria and pain.

**XxX**

**E**ustace Greengrass was looking with some trepidation at the objects that were now resting in front of him; they were a series of artefacts that would notify him the safety of his daughters, or more especially their maidenhood and life.

They were four of them, two that would tell him about the lost of the maidenhood, and the rest that would tell him the state of their lives, two of this objects were pretty much normal, telling him that one of his daughters was safe and untouched in both senses, in this case and for his pleasure it was Astoria who seemed to be safe, she was already promised to the Malfoy family for a vast sum of gold as a dowry.

But them the artefacts that were linked to Daphne were screeching and smoking, something seriously wrong was happening to his daughter, something that was destroying her maidenhood and her life at the same time. He began to sweat profusely; the girl was already sold to a really powerful family of the Chinese Triad. He cursed her, now really worried for his life knowing that the 'Mountain master' had the same artefact with him to preserve a proof of Daphne's purity.

He gasped in horror when both artefacts began to shake and dismantle themselves, showing that Daphne purity and life were quickly being stripped away from her, he cursed loudly when both imploded signifying that Daphne has ceased to exist completely, so he rushed to the floo network to call for the headmaster trying and imploring the gods that this was nothing more than a malfunction in the charms.

Sadly for him, when he reached the flames the head of the man that he so didn't wanted to see at this exact moment suddenly appeared. Li Zhao Tsung, the father of Li Su and the leader of the Chinese Triad was looking at him with such an stare that he knew pretty much that his response to the man inquiries would determine if he lived or not to see another day.

**XxX**

**A**lbus knew that something was seriously wrong when he finally put a foot on the school grounds, especially when the first thing to receive him was the Patronus of Minerva, he gasped when he heard the message, in fact this had surprised him so much that he proceeded to do something that people of his age weren't supposed to do.

He ran, ran as if Fluffy was on his back trying to bite his bottom.

He ignored the gasps of surprise from students and portraits alike when he rushed by their side and in front of them, something horrible had happened when he was outside the school, something that had not happened in thirty seven years.

Someone had assaulted one of the girls under his charge, no one really knew who did it as the girl was unconscious at the moment, but he would catch the culprit even if his career and life depended on it No one abused a girl like _that_ on his watch especially in his school. He opened the doors of the infirmary with a force that someone of half his age shouldn't have, in fact he couldn't feel his left arm after that, but he needed to know what happened in his absence.

Then he found McGonagall alongside of Parkinson and to his distaste Umbridge, the latter looking almost smugly at him, as if she was enjoying this event that would surely undermine his image as a reliable Headmaster. He ignored all three of them, examining the infirmary with his half moon spectacles seeing that only Poppy was actually present apart from the other females, he was about to ask for Severus when the voice of Umbridge interrupted him in the act.

"I knew that you weren't up to the task of Headmaster, Dumbledore. This is the final nail to your coffin, the Minister will not tolerate…" He ignored her immediately, now trying to reach Poppy to know what has happened to the girl, he shivered when he finally saw some of the damage done upon her face, especially when said damage was bringing some unwanted memories of Ariana, his reason for why he hated this abomination even if it took him almost sixty years to let his own ego die to acknowledge the fact that he wasn't the one that would bring a change in the magical world.

"What happened, Poppy?" His voice was soft, trying to not perturb the sleeping girl, even if it was obvious that she wouldn't wake up thanks to Pomfrey ministrations, the woman looked him at the eyes, her indignation being quite clear to him. "This is a horrible case of abuse Albus; I haven't seen this kind of damage in decades much less in someone so young."

"I will have you arrested for this Dumbledore, you can no longer…" Continued Umbridge, almost feeling elated by the situation, Minerva on the other hand seemed to have reached her limit and he could see that she was about to curse the stuffing out of the unwanted woman so he decided to intervene.

"That's enough, you will maintain the sanctity of this place Madame Umbridge, your accusations aren't welcomed here –"

"How dare you-"

"I SAID enough, OUT with you now! This isn't the office of the minister were it appears that you can do as you please, this is Hogwarts, a school if you hasn't noticed; and I am the Headmaster here not you nor the Minister, so I command you to get out of this infirmary." She looked aghast, probably not expecting him to react like this.

"How-" Again her words died on her mouth when he decided to put an end to this woman voice using his wand to silence her, something that probably would remain for a while before the spell actually lost its power. This seemed to be enough to make her take a reddish colour thanks to her ire, gladly the message was finally delivered when she noticed that he hasn't lowered his wand, telling her quite clearly without the needs of voiced words that more will come if she keeps pushing his buttons.

She huffed, raising her head to glare at them, mostly being that all she could actually do before she left the infirmary, probably trying to notify the Minister of what happened here. He sighed knowing that a hard and probably lost battle waited for him tomorrow.

He looked in the direction of the Parkinson girl, seeing her closely, examining her posture and her role in this horrid event, she seemed to be awed and terrified of him, especially when his eyes were so focused on her.

"Miss Parkinson, tell me everything you know about this atrocity, and don't let any detail out, even the most insignificant, because I assure you, I will find the culprit and make him or her pay for this."

She gulped, it was pretty visible to his eyes that she seemed to know something, and he wouldn't let her leave this room after he was satisfied that all the information was extracted from her.

"I found her, she was supposed to be my companion this night-"

"Companion in what exactly, miss Parkinson."

"In the inquisitorial squad Headmaster, it's was our first patrol with the group that Madame Umbridge created yesterday, she was-" Again someone interrupted the conversation, this time it seemed to be the Weasley kids, he looked at Minerva who immediately took charge of the wayward students, and tried to continue with the girl when the voice of Minerva interrupted him again.

"Albus, something it's happening in the castle, Ronald Weasley seems to be missing, his brothers insist that something had happened to him."

He sighed, feeling a migraine already taking place on his head, "Take them to Gryffindor's common room Minerva, and notify the staff of an urgent meeting, we need to resolve this tragedy as soon as possible, but first I need to listen to Miss Parkinson about…"

Miss Weasley apparently tired of being ignored and dismissed, angrily snarled at him, ignoring the calls of Minerva in the process, "Look here you-"

As expected her fire was abruptly extinguished when her eyes were on the body of Miss Davis, he sighed, this truly wasn't his night. With a movement of his hand a curtain was draw between the girls, giving Miss Davis well deserved privacy, Poppy huffed apparently soon to approach her limit, something that he couldn't blame her for.

He looked at the redheaded intruder, "Miss Weasley, I suggest you to obey your head of house and depart promptly from this area." This seemed to shake her from her state; in fact he could see that her fire was slowly returning back to her earlier indignation so he decided to put an end to this situation. "That's and order not a suggestion Miss Weasley," He looked at her eyes, trying to make a point here; he was surely getting tired of this interruptions.

Her brothers apparently got the message something that the girl still didn't seemed to catch in her current state. Both quickly took her on their arms and in a show of dexterity dragged the little dragon out of the infirmary without being kicked, jinxed or cursed in the process. Minerva sighed in exasperation and probably stress, once the site was clear of any interruptions he finally looked at Miss Parkinson, noticing that the girl was more composed and guarded than before, it seemed that the interruption served her right, and he barely contained the expletive from escaping his throat.

He finally was accepting the fact that he was too old for this.

**XxX**

**S**he couldn't feel her body in fact she couldn't feel anything after the Cruciatus curse had impacted on to her anatomy, she was a fool, she should have reacted when she saw the woman draw her wand, it was obvious that the woman didn't liked her very much, especially after she declined her offerings of tea and cookies.

Mostly because she ordered her to eat them instead of asking, implying that they were probably tampered, with what she could only guess but she wasn't going to take the chance with so much at risk on her life. She finally used her aloof persona again against this woman, something that seemed to irritate her greatly and when she saw that that wasn't working at all, she decided to remind her that she was the scion of a Pureblood Family, she never used the pure-blooded card, mostly because it was only used by spoiled child's, Malfoy being a good example.

That was the moment when the Curse landed on her, she didn't knew for how long, but it was enough to make her incapable to control her body, her throat was probably raw with how much she screamed and her body was still unresponsive, in fact, she could barely heard Persephone calling her again and again, trying to reach her without success.

Then she feel the presence of Jäger, followed closely by Renata, the three of them were calling her desperately, she tried to reach them but it seemed impossible, as if they were talking to her and she was underwater, their voices were distorted and barely comprehensible, but she knew that they wanted her to react, to fight and she did her best, even when she was feeling like she was submerged in jam, everything was constraining her and made movement almost impossible, but she endured and slowly she had a pace, their voices were more clear now, and she struggled more to reach them.

She could hear Jäger and the others, in fact she could now hear Harry and Hermione among them, calling her name desperately, she increased her pace, she needed to know what happened to them, why were they so worried and desperate, then suddenly, the darkness that surrounded her was replaced by light, the feeling of being enclosed in jam finally disappearing with the appearance of the brightness, she opened her mouth to speak now finding that she could actually do it, discovering that she was now surrounded by her lovers and friends, she gulped and inhaled air with desperation feeling horridly and dizzy, her eyes barely able to see with so much light surrounding her.

She grabbed with desperation what she supposed was Harry, who was openly weeping over her body rocking her back and forth, over him was Hermione who was hiccupping and wailing, she seemed to be trying to engulf her and Harry in a hug. Then she remembered that Umbridge had maintained the unforgivable for almost ten minutes, stopping when someone had called at her door.

She tried to scream for help but she couldn't, and it seemed that the office was charmed accordingly to the occasion, she was levitated and thrown into one of the closets, feeling how her body was on fire followed closely by an urge to sleep that she couldn't evade not mattering how much she wanted to, but in the end the need was too strong and even when the screams of Persephone were resounding on her head she let the sleep claim her.

Then after what seemed mere seconds, she heard voices that were calling her that she knew instinctively that she had to reach.

She smiled even when she was feeling tired and itchy, the fire of before was disappearing, instead she was feeling like ants walking all over her body, incommodious but not painful.

Harry was kissing her lips, nose, and cheeks over and over saying "never do that," between each new kiss, while Hermione just seemed content by trying to get the stuffing out of her and Harry, it was nice but really uncomfortable.

Then they heard a scream, followed closely by a 'thump' and a moan, Harry looked at the direction of Neville to see him on the floor moaning in pain while Umbridge was seething on the door, she seemed to be trying to scream without success, apparently she was capable enough to cast a curse silently, like some of the seventh years had showed them.

She tried to stop Harry but it was too late, seemingly as fast as lightening, and before the woman launched another curse, from his hands a bolt of electricity appeared, impacted on to the woman, immediately launching her against the wall of the hallway her mouth open in a utter agony.

The current was flowing on her body and getting out from her feet's, she could smell that her flesh was burning, in fact she could see that her dress was on fire in the spot were the electrical current had impacted first, she tried to say something but she was enthralled by the display of power from Harry, Hermione on the other hand who was tending a now bleeding Neville seemed to see red, and to her surprise she transformed on to her half beast shape and in a single leap reached the surprisingly still living woman and crushed her throat with a single punch.

That seemed to wake Harry from his fury; he seemed to be out of energy, apparently not recharging himself by absorbing the magic from the castle to evade what could be a future investigation over the entire place. He was about to fall on to the floor when Hermione appeared at his side and took him on her arms, slowly returning to her human form in the process.

She could see that the Brunette was crying, apparently aware of her actions even when she knew that the woman deserved what had happened to her. She seemed to be overwhelmed by the experience and was hugging Harry as if her life depended of it, they needed help and urgently, but they didn't knew how to get it.

Then she remembered the house elf that Harry had mentioned before, "Dobby!" she called, the creature appeared immediately apparently confused, but that disappeared instantaneously when he saw what had happened here, she asked him to find help, to find McGonagall and he disappeared promptly.

Six minutes later she heard a feminine scream, followed closely by the sound of hurried steps, Fred and George appeared on the broken door, behind them McGonagall gasped in horror at the scene, she commanded one of the Twins to get the Headmaster and Pomfrey immediately, letting escape a series of expletives in her native tongue that she wasn't really sure if she wanted to know.

Ginny reached Neville who was receiving some treatment from McGonagall, provably stopping the bleeding on the wound of his back product of the curse of Umbridge, she for her part finally reached Hermione, who engulfed her in a desperate hug while Harry was slowly losing conscience after his power display, apparently he had done something more in that movement of his.

She could feel her friend trembling profusely, so even when she wasn't in a good shape she did it for the sake of Hermione, now noticing that their mental bond was open again discovering why exactly Hermione was so distressed. Taking a risk she shared much more of her mind with the Brunette trying to help her get over what she had done, it wasn't a good idea knowing that in the long march this would imprint a part of herself on to the girl and vice versa.

But nothing mattered at the moment, finally finding the problem she did the exchange and the experience was painless and quick, Hermione seemed to be calming after the procedure, but the stress finally got a hold of her and before her own eyes she fainted over Harry who was unconscious himself, she smiled knowing that she would soon follow them, George was behind them, trying to make them react in vane, she looked at him and with a smile she fell asleep again, this time over Hermione ignoring the calls of George, Ginny and McGonagall.

**XxX**

**T**he tiger snarled a warning, but the creatures didn't seem to be afraid of him, he roared trying to control his own fear, preparing himself for the battle that would suddenly happen. Then a second roar echoed in the forest, and the tiger looked briefly to his female companion who instead of a tigress was a black panther with golden eyes.

She was weak, too young to be of much use to him in the battle to come, but his instinct was leading him to protect her because she was the mate he had selected this night.

The spiders seemed to sense the fragility of the panther, and were trying to separate them, but he wouldn't bulge or leave her behind, his claws were sparkling with unreleased energy that he had devoured from the fallen arachnids, the only thing that seemed to put a distance between the eight legged demons and them. Then the sound of leaves being violently pushed aside caught their attention seeing that over their heads at least four spiders were falling over them, their fangs extended to bite.

The Tiger roared letting go a huge discharge of electricity from his body getting the four falling spiders and two more in front of him, he huffed, both in annoyance and in worry, the magical power that he had devoured was quickly diminishing alongside his force, something that the insects were aware after he took the magical energy from their fallen brothers, so they understood that letting him recharge was a bad idea, now they were trying their best to prevent that from happening again.

He snarled when one of the bigger ones lost its patience and hurried to confront him, his fangs clicking constantly in a feeding frenzy. The tiger roared and used his hands to grasp the fangs of the beast ignoring how much his fur was smoking thanks to the venom, using his feet to maintain the torso away from him to prevent being covered with the silk that would immobilize him. The panther jumped over his shoulder landing on the back of the struggling spider cutting the shell like a hot knife over butter with her own claws. She snarled in victory before another Acromantula tackled her off the now dyeing spider, she grunted with the impact and rolled quickly over the ground to evade the fangs that were trying to stab her over and over.

The tiger let go of the now death creature and tried to jump over the bodies to help his partner when two more fell over him, making him discharge more electricity to fry them before they inserted their fangs on his flesh, the cat snarled, now too tired to thrown the two bodies away from him, he was listening the struggle between the panther and the last spider, knowing that the black feline was too tired to fight anymore.

He roared and tried to open the shell of one of the paralyzed spiders, reaching for the magic inside of them to recharge his energy when a sickening crunch was heard alongside a roar of pain; he launched away the now empty body of the spider just to see the panther rip apart the head of the arachnid, her arm obviously hurt in the process. He saw her open the body of the insect to devour the magic like she had seen him do so many times in the last fifteen minutes, he saw that the venom was slowly taking away her force so he leaped over her and immediately began to open the bodies for her so she could fest and grown stronger.

She took the energy with gusto and he could see that her body was slowly expunging the venom of her system by the loud hiss on the cavity were the fang has punctured the skin. He saw her feed of at least five arachnids before he began to eat too; even if they were mostly remains he needed to recharge his energy seeing that he would need it, his body was feeling oddly tired and the sleep was almost overpowering him, but he couldn't fall asleep, not when this forest was full of enemies that could kill them for one reason or another.

After four minutes he was recharged again, enough to ignore the tiredness over his body, his senses were on alert again, feeling, sniffing and hearing that a bunch of Acromantula were coming to this place, probably attracted by the ruckus, he knew that they wouldn't endure another fight in this conditions.

He growled to the partner, and she looked at him for a second before the two decided to run very far away from this part of the forest, she was purring in excitement now that her body had absorbed a great deal of magical energy, her human part now almost as occluded by the beast as his own, she was clearly boisterous and they didn't knew exactly why but he wasn't going to protest either, sadly her mating instincts were now overpowered by her need of survival, after all he doubted that they would get the change to mate again with her in this place without encountering more pesky spiders.

With a signal both were running to another part of the forest, leaving behind the bodies of the spiders knowing that the pest were almost if not faster than them, so they needed to get as far as they could and quickly.

They could smell a river to the north thanks to the damp land that surrounded it; they could feel that they were slowly penetrating wolf territory, but were-wolves were only a problem at nights, centaurs and other dangerous creatures lived here so they had to be extremely careful, always extracting knowledge from their suppressed human minds to survive this place. To his luck his mate seemed to be more proficient at information that his own part, but that only made her more attractive to him, after all she was a strong female.

After fifteen minutes of running they finally reached the river, the panther snarled happily at the sight of water, he was satisfied by the good amount of water, he tried to drink a little when a hand appeared from under the surface and dragged him to the insides of the river with an strong and single move, he discharged almost all of his electrical energy gaining his freedom from whatever that had grabbed his fur, and tried to reach desperately the surface, barely getting there with the help of the now frantic panther, she helped him to get out of there quickly both afraid to be dragged back, once they had reached a good distance from the river they rested, both breathing hard for different reasons.

The Panther snarled and growled, and apparently annoyed with this situation she began to lead him to what seemed to be a huge rock, escalating the surface with ease, he followed her closely not as energetic as her, she mewled lowly apparently worried by his state, and he answered back, trying to reassure her that he was fine even when he obviously wasn't. She huffed and in a matter of second began to search for a cave, something that would hide them from an aerial attack, most probably from a hag, once she found one acceptable she called him and in a matter of minutes both of them were settled, quickly getting a well deserved sleep for their bodies.

A few miles of that place, exactly in the scene of the battle against the spiders, Hagrid who was returning back from his travel and was clearly in a bad shape, encountered what he believed was a massacre, Grawp, his half-brother seemed delighted by the sight quickly getting pass him to feast on the apparently still fresh arachnids, he tried to prevent it, but the appearance of at least a twenty of the eight legged demons stopped him on the act, they seemed to be of a new branch of Aragog's nest, and he knew that he was still too far away from the protection of his pet, he knew that he wouldn't get over this unscathed, especially with his own condition and his especial guest, what he didn't knew was that thanks to this he was going to be late by at least one day and a half, saving his live from the irate Minister and the magical world.

**XxX**

**A**lbus saw the teenagers that were now resting on the infirmary with a mix of apprehension and awe, in fact a mix of emotions were fighting for dominance over his head, the old pragmatist, the one that had planned the death of Harry Potter after he saw the dairy of Tom Riddle was trying to tell him to go with his old plan, especially now that he had a strong hold over them thanks to their secrets, all of them.

At first he had been dismayed at what he found, that Harry wasn't human anymore was worrisome mostly because this was an unforgiving world, and this year the magical community hasn't been very supportive of the boy, his enemies had played their cards really well, enough to put Harry and surprisingly him against the wall. So far he had been recollecting old debts to maintain his position as Headmaster, but with every new day Fudge and no doubt Malfoy senior had been doing their best to diminish his power at a slow but steady pace.

He had seen it with Umbridge, the creation of this inquisitorial squad over his back was a clear sigh that she was taking over the school, and that would have been a really complicated problem that he wasn't really sure he would resolve unscathed, in fact if he was realist, he knew that his end was slowly approaching, and he stupidly had put his entire trust on a plan that now was rendered to dust by the boy's condition.

Mostly because he could clearly see that Harry wasn't a Horcrux anymore, in fact he hasn't been one in a while, he had his doubts at first but after a close inspection, something that the boy or his friends never seemed to notice, he had reached the conclusion that the old plans will not work anymore with this situation.

Sadly it was now too late to train the boy appropriately, in fact, not mattering how much he trained the boy he wasn't in the same level of Tom. The man was a prodigious and had at least half a century of experience under his wing, raising Harry to be the equal of a man of such calibre in just twenty years would have been stupid if not impossible, and he doubted that Tom would remain still all this time much less letting grown his opponent to such levels. No, his inner pragmatist knew that training the boy wasn't a viable option. He had to take a risk, one that could cost him dearly.

He sighed knowing that his master Nicolas would kick his arse on the next world when he found what he was about to do, the ritual he was thinking off was the only possibility the boy and his friends had over Tom and probably the minister itself.

He smiled knowing that maybe by doing this his sins would be forgiven in the other life, it was worth the try, but for this to truly work he needed a great deal of blood from the subjects, something easy to do, he just needed to feed them a blood replenishing potion to resolve any risk possible, and Poppy was capable of doing that alone.

He grasped his chest; his heart has been beating against his thorax painfully lately, probably a sign that his end was closer than before; he ignored it, knowing that some of his potions would resolve this problem and prolong his live enough to do this, he walked toward his office, he needed to make a change in his plan quickly if he wanted the magical world to survive this upcoming war.

Once on his office, he proceeded to call Amelia Bones, putting his new plan on action immediately.

**XxX**

**M**oody was taking Arthur's place on the door that took to the hall of prophecies; it seemed that Dumbledore had called the man to an urgent meeting concerning his offspring, not something that mattered to the old Auror that was heavily disguised to be completely and almost utterly undetectable to anyone.

Sadly or happily depending of your position, Moody was much more prepared than Arthur, so when Nagini finally appeared to attack Arthur Weasley, the snake found someone different that immediately decided to kill her in the spot, the green spell killed her painlessly destroying the Horcrux inside of her in the process thanks to the aid of his magical eye and years of experience. Her demise activated the Portkey inside her body, taking her remains to the man that she had bonded with.

Severus who had provided the information of Arthur being the watchman of this particular night without knowing of the sudden change in plans, suddenly found himself in the middle of Voldemort wrath.

The potion master was killed painfully and slowly, his body being dismembered maliciously as a present to Dumbledore knowing that this would give him some time to prepare for a direct attack over the hall of prophesies while the man mourned.

**XxX**

**J**äger took control of the body when he noticed that something was horridly wrong, especially when the Minister tried to take him and everyone else under custody for assassination, something that was supposedly to be a secret at the moment.

The man had brought with him a huge amount of hit-wizards and Aurors to take the boy and his ruffians to 'Azkaban, where they belonged' he had said, just to be interrupted by the sudden appearance of an old lady with greying hair and a monocle over one eye, that seemed to be very incensed by what she was seeing.

Especially when part of her employees where here without notifying her in any fashion or sense, apparently a great breach in the legislation of said body, one that she wouldn't tolerate.

The appearance of Dumbledore only put Fudge on edge, and a huge discussion exploded in the halls of the infirmary, apparently the man wasn't going to let this opportunity escape from his grasp, not when he had the legal means to do so.

Dumbledore on the other hand, seemed to be tense and in fact he looked tired and old, much older than ever, Jäger knew that the situation wasn't really good, especially with Fudge insistence on taking Harry and the rest under the custody of the Ministry, then the situation turned completely black with the appearance of a pair of Slytherin claiming to have found the death bodies of Draco Malfoy and his goons.

Fudge seemed to freeze over the news, while Madame Bones took charge over her wayward elements ordering them to call reinforcements apparently not trusting too much on them at the moment, within an hour the school was on complete lockdown with Aurors running in all directions trying to recover the lost order, the fact that some of the hit wizards stayed by Fudge side was not lost to him.

Much more when the man had been whispering to some of them when they believed that nobody was looking at their direction, the fact that some of them had been slowly advancing on Hermione's body was what put on red his alarms on the matter that Fudge was trying to do something drastic and probably idiotic.

Jäger knew that he had to wake up Harry, but the boy was under the effect of a potion to maintain him asleep for the moment, so he had to take the body for himself, he absorbed some of the magic of the school, causing some of the artefacts in the infirmary to shut down entirely after the magic was absorbed from them, the body suddenly raised up over the bed sheets making a thundering sound after he stopped the absorption to recharge himself.

He was looking at the now stupefied wizards that were approaching the body of Hermione, "If you dare to even touch a single hair of her head, you will not be coming out of this place unscathed."

They were obviously offended by his words if the look in their faces were to judge them by, but before anyone could move a muscle the figure of Poppy Pomfrey appeared immediately between them, her eyes hard as steel while her wand was clearly on her hand, both fiercely focused on the hit-wizards.

"Out of my Infirmary, out I tell you."

They tried to protest, but any kind of response was rendered null when the voice of Madame Bones appeared out of nowhere, "I suggest that you follow Madame Pomfrey instructions gentlemen, it would be _unwise_ to not do so."

The minister seemed to be ready to explode after that display of power from the woman, "I WILL NOT TOLERATE THIS, I AM THE MINISTER I AM IN CHARGE HERE, NOT YOU." He was almost to the verge of foaming in rage, his big and round eyes almost ready to pop outside his skull at any minute.

The woman, cold and collected seemed to not take his words kindly, "You might be the minister, mister Fudge but that's something that's not going to last after what your employee has done last night, an employee that had your entire support while she was in the position of several dark artefacts, aside from multiple charges of torture and incompetence."

That seemed to anger the man much more, but she wasn't taking notice, in fact she was ignoring him deliberately. "Auror Tonks, Auror Robertson, you will maintain guard over Potter and his friends, they are fundamental to this case."

She looked now in the direction of the soon to be ex-minister, "Now Mister Fudge, the Wizengamot it's awaiting for you at the moment, a gathering about your recent actions had been brought by the houses of Dumbledore, Longbottom, Weasley and Lovegood against your persona, you need to gather your case and assist as soon as possible to refute and defend your actions against their accusations."

The colour seemed to drain from his face, he sputtered, trembled and proceeded to run toward the hall, probably trying to reach the outside of the school to attend this gathering as soon as possible, some of the hit-wizards going with him, Jäger noticed that Madame Bones seemed to sniff in disdain at the man actions, especially after what had been revealed to her in this last seventh hours, he could see it on her eyes.

He looked in his direction, looking at him for a few seconds before she called to her side the Auror called Tonks, (The woman that had escorted Harry out of the Dursley house alongside Moody.) She seemed to put a privacy charm around them, making him curse on his breath knowing that with his sense he could have heard the conversation if he wanted to, and he did wanted to.

He decided to ignore them, for now at least, he had something to worry at the moment, and that would be the murderous gaze that Madame Pomfrey was giving him, especially when some of her beloved artefacts lay motionless at each side of his bed.

He immediately sat, knowing that he had to seems inconspicuous at the moment not wanting to let the woman find about him at the moment, something that was nagging him greatly, she should have know of them by now, but so far she hasn't inspected them as she used to do before, the great deal of Blood that she had taken from them by Dumbledore orders was worrisome. Something was amiss here and he certainly didn't know how to deal with it, this was more of Hermione's domain.

He guarded silence when the woman began to fuss over him, trying to put his attention on the girls, Neville and Luna who were frankly the most affected last night. He was just trying to ignore how much the woman seemed to know at the moment, trying to decipher what was going to happen from now on.

**XxX**

**A**lbus was feeling that the victory over Fudge was just a pyrrhic victory; they had defeated the man thanks to the actions of Umbridge, but mostly because they had used the card of a pureblood child being assaulted in such a manner that it was unacceptable.

It certainly was giving him a sour taste on his mouth, mostly because Malfoy senior used that said card to put the Wizengamot in an uproar, using the death of his only son to open many old wounds over the issue of non-human settlements and treaties, he used their own hate and bias to occlude them of his son actions, something that the house of Davis didn't condone thanks to the evidence that the Auror had brought to the gathering after and exhaustive study.

In the end, the Wizengamot was divided in three factions, those that supported Malfoy who were sadly a big chunk of the Wizengamot, those that supported Davis who was pretty much pissed at how Malfoy had evaded the justice again, taking with him at least fourteen families that were destroyed in a sense or another thanks to the Malfoy family.

And in the back, having just a few families backing his cause was Dumbledore who was trying to organize some private gatherings with a few families in opposing sides, collecting old debts to put an end to Malfoy campaign of death.

He directed his old body to the office of Madame Bones, knowing that he had to take some precautions with the woman, especially knowing that she was a favourite to the position. He needed her to renounce to the idea of being a candidate, knowing that Tom will use Malfoy movements to gain some followers and destroy some enemies before they choose another minister.

He knew that Rufus Scrimgeour wanted the position that had been plain in the Wizengamot once Fudge was sacked, he knew that the man wasn't the most indicated to the position, Amelia with her no sense persona would make a wonderful Minister, but that would paint a more bigger target on her back.

No, Rufus was an acceptable escape goat against Voldemort movements; Amelia Bones on the other hand was a fundamental step in his new plans to the magical world. He only needed her support, and after this reunion he was pretty sure that she would be at his side completely.

**XxX**

**H**arry looked at the crown that had gathered in his room, the Twins that at the moment where angry at him, Neville who was looking him as if he had lost his mind, at Ginny who smiled sadly, and Hermione and Luna who were at his side supporting his decision.

In the middle of the room where two elves, Dobby who was sobbing openly and an unknown female that identified herself as Dipsy, both creatures had appeared before Harry and proceeded to beg for forgiveness, especially Dobby, once they had calmed them, Dobby told them about how Daphne Greengrass had approached him this year, apparently distressed of her actual situation, she knew that Dobby knew Harry Potter, all the elves in the school knew of this, mostly because he repeated it all the time.

So she implored him to help her become closer to Harry Potter, to make him fall for her, to save her from being a slave, she told him of how when she had his heart she would convince him to adopt Dobby under his care.

At first he denied her, but she was insistent, and with each new approach she was more desperate, especially this year, she implored, begged and tried to force him to understand her, apparently she believed that Harry was too much of a good guy to abuse of her in any sense, that he would be a good partner if he claimed her as a woman, knowing that he would marry her to protect her honour.

That even if they didn't loved each another, that he would sacrifice himself to protect her because he was that kind of guy, and that she, even when she didn't loved him at all would try to make the deal acceptable, probably try her best to learn to love him, if not then at least being a close friend.

After a week of this, Dobby agreed, but he sincerely didn't knew how to approach him, so when Ron appeared on the kitchen, he was a opening that he immediately told her to use, knowing that if she gained the redhead confidence, then that she would be much closer to Harry than doing it any other fashion.

Then he tried to punish himself over and over, just to stop completely when Harry ordered him to not do it again, ever, Luna was a little angry at him, but she told him that she didn't hated him, Hermione likewise.

Then Dipsy began to tell them of how she knew Greengrass, and in the end everyone could understand why the girl was so desperate to grab Harry, even he admitting that he would have felled easily if she knew how to approach him, something that Luna had to admit was true if the clueless boy she knew in the forest was to judge him by.

Then Harry proceeded to reveal to the Twins about his condition, and how much he had been hiding from them, they weren't exactly pleased, but the fact that he had been trying to approach Ron to tell him of the problem seemed to appease them, even if not much, in the end it was Ginny intervention that put them on a more friendly term.

They still glared at Harry thought, but mostly by what he had told them at the moment, "Are you forbidding us to come in this mission of yours to save our Brother Potter!" Harry sighed at the tone of George, he wasn't accustomed to be on their bad side, but even when he knew that they wouldn't like it, he nodded.

"We are using our condition to protect ourselves from the others creatures in the forest, and besides, its easier if the group separates at the moment."

Fred was about to raise his voice in protest when Ginny added, "How so Harry,"

The boy looked at her grateful for the opportunity to explain himself, "Our disappearance will raise alarms over the school, the one that supported Umbridge will use this to stir the waters, I am still ratter disliked by the magical world so it would be pretty easy to twist this against me again."

Neville curiously asked, "Then Why separate the group Harry?"

Harry sighed, "Because I need _you_, all of you to train as hard as you could, the study group it's now a necessity, I doubt that _HIM_ would remain still when the magical world it's in such an state about what happened here, If I disappear for a while with a big group he will try to find me and destroy me once and for all, so even if we fail and end up death you would be prepared for what's to come."

That seemed to put a stop on the glaring that the twins were sending to him, Fred finally sighing after a while, "Are you sure that Ron is still alive?"

Luna nodded, "I strongly believe that he is still alive, we shouldn't lose our hope, don't lose faith on what we are capable for because if you do, then everything it's lost."

Ginny immediately asked, "This could be the last time we saw each another."

Hermione denied with her head, "It could, but it wouldn't be, we will come back with Ron, I promise you Ginny." They weren't on the best terms, but they knew that they would sorely miss the other if something happened.

Harry nodded before he looked at Neville, "Mate, you are in charge, I know that you can do it If you believe in yourself, so don't tell me that you aren't capable, because I know pretty well that you are a really capable student. Be careful of Marietta, she's our principal suspect but I am beginning to doubt that she is the only one, remember whoever it is, was plotting alongside Umbridge, or knew that she would fall to torture to get what she wanted, so be careful." He looked at the twins, seeing that they were not glaring at him anymore, at least not for the moment.

"I know that you are mad at me, and I don't blame you for it, but we need your help now more than ever." Both redheads nodded their faces still too serious to his liking. Then he looked at Dobby who had tears on his eyes, "Are you sure that you could get us out the castle without anyone noticing?"

"Yes Mister Harry Potter sir. Dobby knows how to do it sir."

"Then do it, Luna, Hermione, are you sure that you want to come with me?"

Both girls huffed in annoyance, "Don't try to persuade us again Harry, you aren't going to do this alone, not anymore, this is as much of our fault as is yours." Said Hermione, Luna on the other hand finally stand up and walked in his direction.

"We should go, the more time we lose, the more time Ronald it's alone out there."

Dipsy finally added after some seconds, "And Missus."

Harry nodded at their words then he took his cloak and put it on, dragging Hermione and Luna with him now following the whisperings of Dobby.

Meanwhile on of the ceiling a ghost disappeared at the same time Harry did, hurrying to report this to Dumbledore.

**TBC**

**Coming back from vacations…**

**Yes I killed Snape, to me that's what he deserved, be killed without much fanfare, putting entire chapters just to bash him, or to make him die in a sense or another, it's putting too much attention over a character that I dislike when I don't want to. So letting him die as a cockroach, painfully and quickly was more fit to him in my eyes. **

**I tried to make good Dumbledore but it clashed horridly with the story, so I am using another approach, one that I liked much more than the good Dumbledore, I hope that at least I do something different with him than the norm of how to portray him lately. **


	13. Chapter 13

**This chapter is unbetaed, it WILL contain several mistake's that I couldn't perceive with my knowledge. Now I am still in need of a Beta but my efforts are fruitless so far to find one willing to do the work.**

**At least in the grammar. **

**Now I have the help of someone that can help me to fix and add details to the whole story, new scenes in old chapters and so fort. I will announce those changes when I could replace all chapters with their new versions.**

**Sorry for my limited english, I hope this chapter is good enought to be read. If not tell me and I will take it out to correct it again.**

**T**he twins were looking at the now unconscious bodies of two of the Aurors that where posted to guard over the castle. Their hands were shaking alongside the rest of their bodies, mostly because of the consequences of their actions. The male was ridiculously easy to defeat, especially with the clever use of one of their prototypes that Fred wanted to label as 'Peruvian Instant Darkness Powder'. The female Auror on the other hand, well that was another story entirely. To begin with she was competent, even more than her fallen companion, and even when she wasn't supposed to see them through the powder she had launched a series of nasty spells, jinxes and curses on their general direction that almost put them down for good.

But in the end the invisibility cloak that Harry gave them for this occasion served them very well, enough for them to approach the woman to put a _Petrificus_ on her to prevent any movement from her part, something that unknowingly saved them from a surprise attack from the pink haired woman.

The two quickly disappeared on to the halls of the School, knowing that the ruckus that their attack had caused has put on alert the entire castle, and in fact seeing the map they could see that the fight had gained the attention of several members of the school staff and the other three Aurors on the school, the most prominent name on the map being that of Albus Dumbledore.

Thankfully this fight had make the escape of Harry and his friends much more easier, and they could, in fact, see that they were now disappearing into the edges of the Forbidden forest thanks to the map, only losing a few minutes in what they believed was a goodbye.

It wasn't easy for them to forgive Harry for what had happened to his brother, but it wasn't any easier to hate someone that you were rather fond of either. In the end they were just confused about what to think over the matter, hoping that everything will end fine in the end.

Sadly none of them actually believed that it would end like that.

**XxX **

**G**inny saw the bodies of her friends finally disappear in the distance, slowly being consumed in a world of shadows and wood that she sincerely didn't wanted to be part of. She sobbed, knowing that this could be the last time she saw them, but mostly because this marked the end to her crush on Harry James Potter. She sighed, looking at the now pensive Neville at her side, she was aware of his attraction to her, but she wasn't ready to begin a relationship after the deception that Harry had brought upon her.

But then again, she knew that in Neville she could at least find a solid friend, one that she could actually count with in times like this. After all he was always a predictable guy, the kind that you could actually count on, knowing that he wasn't just deceiving her to get on her panties.

"Ginny, what do you know about the Animagus transformation?"

Then with that single question he goes and destroys her preconceived image of him being a spineless guy. She smiled, truly curious about what he had in mind, yes the idea of being capable of changing forms was alluring to her. Especially when she saw what Harry and the girls were capable of, but she wasn't ready to thrown away her humanity or ideals to gain that ability as Hermione and Luna had done.

"Not much, but I am willing to find more!"

**XxX **

**D**umbledore was scared, yes outside he looked composed and rather relaxed, but in reality he was terrified of what had happened.

Harry had taken a decision that was about to complicate not only his life but the life of everyone else. He had again taken an action without thinking the consequences on the great scale. His disappearance at the moment, when he was actually a key element to the recent case of corruption in the ministry will cause a ruckus that will in fact only be favourable to Malfoy.

When he heard of the plans to go to the forbidden forest from the ghost, he had tried to reach them quickly to impede their foolish actions even if he had to magically restrain them. But it seemed that when he finally reached the place the fight had not only ended, but it was more than clear that his side wasn't the winner in said struggle.

Leaving Minerva there along others to deal with the fallen Aurors, he rushed to the door that would lead him to the outside, trying to find the boy before he leaved the confines of the castle and rushed to what would be a certain death.

But when he finally reached the door, only Miss Weasley and Mister Longbottom were there, he called to the castle magic, trying to sense the presence of Harry or Hermione even Miss Lovegood, but it was to no avail. It was almost as if they were invisible, something that was practically impossible as the wards that protected the castle reached at least one mile into the forest.

So either Harry or the ladies where more resourceful than what he initially believed and used a magical method to travel, like a broom. Or the qualities of this new form of life was much more advanced and complicated than what his initial thoughts had lead him to believe.

Both teens froze their advancement when they finally noticed him, he needed to know much more than what he knew at the moment, especially if he wanted to find Harry and the girls, he needed to know much more about their new forms to correct the ritual that he had initially prepared for them. But more importantly, he had to keep the disappearance of Harry Potter as a secret for at least for two days, he needed time to prepare and convince some families to his side to take away the sudden power that Malfoy had gained lately.

"We need to talk," He finally told to the two teenagers.

**XxX**

**M**illicent smiled seeing the relaxed purr that her lover was offering her after a well deserved snogging session. It wasn't as if this was their first time doing it, but after what they had done these days, their sessions had been more intense, almost frantic.

"Pansy my love, are you sure that Davis will not rat us out? After all she is in a good position to harm us if she wants to." The voluptuous girl asked, gaining a sigh from her female companion.

"Millicent my dear, do not sully this moment with the mention of that riff raft." Pansy said trying to smuggle her head against the well proportioned breasts of her secret girlfriend, trying to regain a good position to hear the sound of her heart. Sadly for her the big boned girl wasn't going to accept that as an answer if her constant shifting was to judge by.

Sighing, the black haired teen finally raised her head half annoyed by how many times they had to discuss this. "What we did to Davis was what she deserved, it was to teach her a lesson; she ratted out her best friend, she practically sentenced her to die when she did so. Malfoy was usually a minor treat to us when he was focused on to the mudblood and Potter. It was why I supported his half-baked plans to put the girl on her place. It wasn't something that I approved, but that put his attention on someone else and not us. Besides, the girl is really well protected by Potter and Weasley, so something actually happening to her in a sexual manner was ridiculous. A jinx, a Hex would have worked marvels if done subtlety, but Malfoy was everything but subtle. He always wanted to impose himself over her, to control and humiliate her completely." Pansy sat herself on her bed, now her mood to cuddle really gone with the direction of the conversation, on her hand was her wand recently used to protect the security of their discussion, not taking anything for granted. Especially after the display of power that Dumbledore had showed before her.

Sighing and massaging between her eyes, she tried to calm the migraine that a few minutes ago she was trying to suppress in the voluptuous cleavage of her lover. "You and I knew that Davis is one of us, Greengrass usually ignored it. Or pretended to not notice the signals, but Davis was obviously smitten with her, All of us knew that Greengrass was up to something this year, especially with how many time's she was leaving the common room at nights. You and I saw how well Davis was taking the new distance between her and Greengrass, so when she finally got the courage to follow her; I tagged along without any of them even noticing it. And what a surprise we discovered. Greengrass seemed to be all chummy with Weasley of all people; it was disgusting that she was seeing a _man _of all things, but Weasley? I guess she wasn't as smart as we used to believe." She spat on the floor trying to erase the bitter taste on her mouth at the mere idea.

Millicent finally spoke, "I understand Pansy, believe me I do, but I understand too why Davis ratted out Greengrass, she was tortured, then buggered by one of those brutes! Any girl would—" She immediately was interrupted by Pansy who angrily raised her body from her bed. "No she doesn't! We have been in the same position and have never betrayed the other! Or have you forgotten _what _Goyle and Crabbe seniors have done to _us_ to prove our loyalty to their line? Have you forgotten how the two of us knew each another in that horrid day before our first year? Have you forgotten the pain, the humiliation that they infringed on us? Even when they repeated it again this last summer I never ratted you out, I never betrayed your trust even when both of them were _thrusting_ against me at the same time, trying to break me mentally while they were enjoying me physically. No Millicent, if Davis really loved Greengrass she would have endured it, like we have been doing it for each another."

Millicent immediately launched herself upon the now frantic Pansy who was trying to struggle her way out of the big boned girl arms, only to finally surrender on the embrace, slowly relaxing on her fragrance. "I know Pansy and I understand, I am just worried and I think a little scared of the possibility that she would rat us out. You know as well as me that right now a power struggle it's changing the structure of the entire Hogwarts, the groups that Malfoy used to keep in line with the treat of his father are moving swiftly and mercilessly. I am afraid that Malfoy senior would try to dismantle the accusation against his son in a rather painfully way, and if he ever get a hold of our involvement we are death."

Pansy nodded, acknowledging that she too was afraid, "That's why I made her swear upon her magic and life that she would not rat us out, then proceeded to beat her with your help, the buggering of Crabbe upon her only helped us in the long run, it is more believable that three males mistreated her just to sexually abuse of her. The wizards are too close-minded to think that a woman it's capable of such physical damage without the need of magic. And even if she rat us out for kicking the mickey out of her, she still had to pay the price of being an accomplice on the death of Greengrass, Weasley and the idiots, If not legally at least morally."

Millicent smiled, hugging a little tighter her body against Pansy, "I promise you that if she rat us out, I will take you far away from this place, far away from our family and this cursed country, just the two of us, living our lives as we always wanted to. We don't have to tolerate anymore the mistreatment of Crabbe and Goyle family."

Pansy sobbed, this time smiling bitterly, "I wish it was so easy, how I wish it was possible for us." Millicent hugged her harder, trying to maintain her own tears on check. "I know, but I still promise you to try my best to keep them away from you. Not anymore will they touch us."

That night the two of them sleep together on the same bed trying to gain some comfort in the arms of the others, knowing that their futures were becoming black with each new day.

**XxX **

**T**hey keep running as long as their feet could carry them, their minds and senses always on overdrive thanks to the transformation, joy and fear mixed on a level that they had never before felt.

Harry was in fact really aware of the power that now was rushing inside his body, he could feel the electricity under his skin waiting to be unleashed, he could feel his magic waiting on his mere command, but sadly he couldn't feel his wand. It was as if the wooden implement didn't like at all this form and denied him every attempt to channel his magic trough the core.

It was something that greatly worried him, in his human form the wand worked perfectly without any problem, but in this form the wand seemed to dislike his magical power and never worked as well as is his original shape. That could mean a great deal of things, but most probably that in this form he wasn't as compatible with the wand putting a limit on his actions and possibilities to merely brawl abilities and electrical attacks.

Not a good combination against someone of Voldemort level. Yes his claws and electricity was usually a deadly combination, but for that you needed to be close and the Dark Lord would never let them be that close.

"Harry," Said Luna taking away his attention from his thoughts, he nodded in her direction while taking notice of his surroundings; they were in a place that actually could get them killed even in this form if they weren't careful.

Once they had stopped Luna finally said, "We need to set a camp, we can't continue like this all the time." Hermione nodded in accordance clearing her throat a little before she began to talk. "We need to rest or we wouldn't be of any help in a battle if we are already tired." Harry nodded seeing their point. So far many creatures were curious but cautious about them, maybe feeling their ability to absorb magical energy while they passed.

"You girls can rest first; I will take the first guard. I am still overcharged after what happened in the infirmary."

Luna frowned a little, thinking for a while before she reached a quick conclusion. "We can use my father's magical tent. We can be half feline's now, but that doesn't mean that we have to live and rest like them. The tent has lots of enchantments that will guarantee our safety."

Harry looked at her, a little confused for a while before he remembered the magical tent that Mister Weasley had used for them in the past. "That would be marvellous Luna." Hermione nodded too before she asked. "It would certainly be, but where do you have it? And when did you have the chance to look for that particular tent?"

Luna for her part looked in her direction and said. "I don't have it here Hermione; it's in my house, why would I need to bring a magical tent to a castle?" Her eyes were sparkling in amusement at the bewildered expression of the Muggleborn witch.

Harry smiling a little by the exchange finally asked. "Then how –" he gasped when the information suddenly assaulted his mind when she looked directly at his eyes. Jäger whispered her thoughts directly to his mind as if they had some sort of telepathy, hearing the tiny gasp in the direction of Hermione confirmed seconds later that he wasn't the only one surprised by this.

The brown headed girl sputtered in surprise, not knowing what to say to this improvement of their relationship. Luna not wasting more time on platitudes that could later be explained in the comfortable embrace of a comfy bed immediately called, "Dobby."

It took the elf at least five seconds to shyly appear at her side with a tiny pop to announce his presence. "Yes missus Luna, how can Dobby help you?" the creature seemed shamed on his past actions on them thanks to how naïve he was with Greengrass. Luna took no notice of this behaviour and instantly said. "Dobby I need you to bond with me." The elf opened his eyes wide not actually believing his ears. He looked in the direction of Hermione almost afraid to answer such approach from the blond.

The brunette on the other hand was frowning deeply, he took this as dislike and was about to voice his discomfort when said girl surprised him with her words. "We might need more than one single Elf Luna, they are powerful but a single one will be overwhelmed quickly in this forest." Harry nodded thinking the same, even if he was a little surprised by how much Hermione had grown in the last months.

Luna ignored the flabbergasted face of the elf for a while, thinking deeply. "I know Hermione, but I don't need him to protect us. Yes it's a good idea to have him guard us, but the tent it's pretty much safe for us and undetectable for magical beasts. I need him to bond with me so he can actually penetrate the defence of the Lovegood tower."

She was about to continue when Hermione suddenly launched herself at something that was behind the blond while Harry discharged a great deal of his electricity at whatever had tried to ambush her. She looked at her back seeing a group of red caps being mauled or shocked by the pair so she knew that she was at least safe for now.

"So about that bond Dobby,"

Fifteen minutes later, Luna had a new elf, while Harry and Hermione recollected the spoils of their battle with the red caps, remembering how valuable where the little buggers in the potions market.

It took mere seconds for Dobby to complete the task that Luna had asked him, even much less to prepare the beds and bath for them to cleanse their bodies of the blood and sweat of the battle.

All of them were full of energy and desire after the quick battle, if the highly charged ambiance was to judge by. It took a mere sniff from the elf part to know that he was about to be in a pretty uncomfortable position, so he quietly proceeded to leave taking the quickly tossed clothes with him knowing that he was unneeded to what was about to happen.

**XxX (Lemon On)**

**H**ermione was in ecstasy, the power that flowed upon her body was inebriating, and the feeling of freedom of cheerfulness that her bestial form was bringing upon her was almost like a rush of adrenaline. Alongside her was Luna who was slowly rubbing her body against her putting her skin on fire while her innards twisted uncomfortably.

Harry at her left was seeing them with those green eyes of him, she could sense his power, his energy reaching out to them, caressing, touching, and exploring every inch of her new form in such a manner that she couldn't control her trembling limbs, she made a sound awfully close to a mewl when Luna began to push her own energy against her own, she was feeling hot, afraid but very hot.

It seemed that even if she still doubted a little this agreement between the three, (mostly remnants of the old Hermione who was raised to believe that this kind of relationship was wrong). Her body and a great deal of her mind were leading, almost imploring her to do this to finally let the two of them, yes even Luna, claim her as their own. She moaned when the blond lioness rubber head against her chest, touching certain spots on it that made her skin flare in a rush of sensations that she had never thought a girl could administer upon her.

Then before the two of them knew what was happening, Harry launched himself over them, pushing them upon the dirty ground of the forest, Luna hissed, and Hermione moaned at the sudden intrusion, Harry was emanating a strong rush of power, an delightful mix of electricity and magic, permeating the ambiance in ozone.

Then Luna gasped as he finally claimed her entirely, mesmerizing the brunette with how rough Harry was thrusting upon the blonde. Electrical discharges were flying everywhere, some of them touching the mesmerized Snow Leopard that used to be Hermione, some of them touched her skin, making her shiver in desire and expectation, then Luna finally made a move and for the first time the blonde touched intimately the brunette, her hand caressing her core softly, then increasing the force with each new thrust of Harry.

Hermione screamed as they were not simple caresses, the energy of Luna surrounded her core, going from her insides and out, touching every inch of her anatomy. Hermione had never felt such an emotion of being filled with nothing but energy, she screamed in release and finally let her own energy reach toward the coupling pair, they accepted her and in a mighty roar launched their own, mixing it completely. Luna roared to the skies the fur on her back clearly rising when Harry finally claimed her as his Alpha in these form too.

Then the girl snarled and caressed aggressively the body of Hermione who mewled in complete submission, the blonde approached her throat and before the brunette feline could emit any kind of sound. The blonde bit fiercely, drawing blood in her efforts, her electricity then inundated the body of Hermione marking her as her own, the leopard roared at the sky in euphoria and sexual release while Harry trusted his member on her own core for the first time in that night.

Electricity and raw magic was flowing everywhere, burning the wood of the kitchen table while the floor was slowly getting on fire, Hermione then letting herself go reached the shoulder of Luna and in a simple move inserted her fangs making her power flow into the shuddering body of the blonde.

Then in a huge explosion of energy and lights their electricity fused, gaining a magenta coloration in the process. Renata, Persephone and Jäger appeared on their minds, completely devoted to them and between them, signalling the end of the procedure.

Harry being completely aware that he was reaching the limit of his endurance began to drain off the residual magical energy of the tent, draining dangerously the enchantments that were surrounding the trio. He gasped as he finally recovered the complete control of his body, slowly but carefully he put himself on his feet, trying to put a stop to the sudden rush of information that his senses were giving him.

**(Lemon Off)**

"_**W**hat the hell was that?"_ Harry thought trying to remain calm even if just a little. He looked at the girls who were slowly getting on their feet's too, the floor completely scorched and brownish as they tried to not absorb the magical energy of the tent that Harry hasn't, even if they actually desired to do so to calm the sudden hunger on their bodies.

The black haired teen frowned, trying to find an answer to what had happened, when the answer suddenly appeared before him without the need of a conflict with Jäger.

He was about to comment about what he found when Hermione sighed and quickly lost her bestial form. Luna did the same soon followed by Harry.

The blond took a pair of steps into the direction of the kitchen to look for some refreshment and her wand to put an end to the fire that was slowly eroding more and more of the protections of the enchanted wood table. "We need to be more careful, if we lose our selves like that again we might end up discovering what happens to a living being inside of a collapsed expansion charm."

Hermione snorted, trying to cover herself then stopping seeing that it was already too late to be shy about her nudeness. "Tell me about it, all because the cats were feeling frisky." She tried to prevent a frown from marking her face, but it was in vain, the hand of Luna upon her cheeks a few seconds later actually told her that she was being comforted.

"What Renata and the cats did was actually to our convenience, yes they used us again but I prefer this to be between ourselves, than the other possibility."

Hermione actually snarled at the words of the blonde, "They didn't trust me; even Renata who is supposed to be a part of myself didn't trust me to choose Harry over Ron, even after all of what had happened, what I have done they still thought that it was too dangerous to not mark me completely."

Luna hugged her in that instant, trying to reassure the brunette, "Persephone was having doubts about me too Hermione, don't judge yourself so harshly, we don't know how Ron would react towards us if Harry hasn't marked us completely."

Harry finally said something, "I thought that when I transformed you that you two were mine as I was yours." He focused his mind upon finding the answer to that question on his own when Hermione of all people finally answered him after a final sigh.

"You transformed us, yes, even marked us in our human shape, but we have two forms and another entity inside of us Harry. We have our half beast form and that was still unclaimed, then we have the cats who are another deal entirely, you claimed us physically, but Renata and Persephone were still free to claim, so was Jäger, all of this was just to prevent Ron from taking one of us for his own."

Luna interrupted her, "He still can claim one of us, but now it is more difficult for him, he need's to override the mark of Harry and them our own, but I don't desire him, and I know that you have finally choose Harry over him. Equally, Harry belongs to us now; no new female can seduce him easily as he is ours entirely. We can still add more people. But I, like you Hermione, will not try to increase our numbers. This relationship it's between the three of us and no one else."

"I don't have any intentions of adding more girls either; I don't have any need for. I have the two of you at my side and that's more than enough." Harry Proclaimed.

Hermione huffed slightly on the arms of the blonde, her own insecurities still pretty strong on her mind. But setting those fears aside she finally asked. "What are we going to do after we find Ron?" She was terrified of how the world was treating their disappearance after such an event as the death of Umbridge.

Harry snorted ignoring the reproachful glare of Hermione and Luna over how he had almost depleted the magical tent of the magic. "I don't know. I have so much in mind that the only thing that I can clearly thing at the moment it's that I need to protect you two. Ron it's on a distant second place on my head, and after him everything it's black."

Luna releasing Hermione and slowly changing back into her half-Lioness form finally answered. "We have already reached a solution to the first problem, we are marked by you, and Ron would need to fight and overpower us to change that. We actually have a secure place to sleep this night; now that we are protected, we need to find a solution to another problem of ours."

Hermione who noticed with a hint of curiosity that Luna's wand seemed to be trembling in the hands of the girl with suppressed energy, "Luna I need you to try something for me, try to cast _Lumos_ with your wand hand while you stay as a hum… Were-Lioness?" Nodding, the blonde immediately tried to cast the charm only to find that it wasn't working.

Hermione looking horrified for a second immediately used her own wand to cast _Lumos, _getting to her relief a speedy response. Luna understanding the actions of the brunette instantaneously changed back into her human form, casting again and to her own relief noticing that the wand was emanating light.

Harry who was frowning finally said what the two girls were thinking, "it seems that our wands do not work very well with our half-beast form." Both girls nodded, each thinking the pros and contras of such a liability. Harry noticing the worry on their faces said. "Ok, we need to be careful, even much more careful than before. It seems that our transformation does not mix with our wands, probably thanks to how we channel the magic upon our entire body to cast the electricity. It would have been much easier if we could use the wand in this form but we don't have that option. I guess what form we choose might depend greatly of who we are going to fight with."

Both girls nodded, but Hermione needed to ask, "Ok, that could be troublesome, but we need to find if it's something temporal or just if our new form isn't a good mix for the elements inside our wands."

Harry smiled thinking the same, "Then as soon as we rescue Ron, we should pay a visit to the wand shop to find if our problem it's just the case of a bad mix between wand and user."

Luna smiled, purring slightly as she changed to human shape, "But for now who's in for a second round?"

**XxX**

**F**enrir smiled from ear to ear, it seemed that some dumb cat had overstepped their boundaries on the forest, apparently if the smell was to judge them by, a tiger and a panther, probably a cougar. It was an anomaly that he needed to investigate, those weren't native animals, so they had been introduced illegally then freed when they had become too big to maintain.

Or they had escaped from their owners, probably some rich family that never put too much attention on said felines, but they seemed to be covered in blood, spades of blood, Acromantula, some of red cape, but more importantly, a tiny and quickly disappearing trace of human blood, Malfoy blood to be more precise.

The leader of said house had thrown aside his differences with him two nights ago and approached him with an interesting offer. Two hundred pieces of gold for the head's of the beast that had murdered his spawn, with a bonus of one hundred more if he captured them alive for him to enact revenge.

He would have done the deed for free, just for the pleasure of the hunt, but he wasn't a fool to throw away that money, so now here he was, with eleven of his most faithful comrades following the trail of an unknown beast in the forbidden forest.

Feeling how his blood was boiling in the rush of emotion that this particular hunt was providing. In two nights the moon will appear in the black sky, and he was anything but patient when a bloodbath was upon his hand.

**XxX**

**T**he tiger snarled at his companion seeing that she was still munching on to the leg of the deer that they had captured three hours ago. He was uncomfortable, uneasy. His instincts were telling him that he was being trailed, hunted and treated as prey. But that was impossible, not when he was so secure that he was one if not the most powerful entity on the forest.

His companion huffed, showing him her teeth's in a sign of annoyance and compliance, she was his, but she still refused to claim him, to mark him as he had marked her and he was growing restless because of it.

The black feline on the other hand, was content in her position, deciding when and how she would mark the tiger as her own. His insistence only fomented more her decision. She wasn't feeling the same need that him of rushing out the mating process. She liked the mating sessions, but something deep inside of her was uncomfortable, as if something was missing, that not mattering how much they continue to mate, a part of her was still free and untamed.

She hissed in annoyance when the tiger tried again to take away her own portion, after the fight against those spiders he had been hungry and rather weak lately, he was absorbing energy and eating everything in front of him that he could get his claws into. And that was worrying her, it seemed that the poison affected him much more than it had affected her, she didn't knew why she was so resistant to poisons, but her body had simply ignored the symptoms entirely while he was always using part of his power to maintain a healthy shape. But after a day of doing that it seemed that he was finally reaching the end of his capabilities.

She huffed and ignoring her own needs, she offered the piece of meat to the tiger, deciding that it was better to have him strong to fight against other menaces in this area, than not. After all she was still syphoning magic off the nature as much as him, it was just a matter of time before her body finally admitted that the tiger was in fact a nice mate to be with, even if he was sometime tiresome.

**XxX**

**H**arry tried not to frown in annoyance as he and the girls tried to hide themselves from the massive creature that was accompanying Hagrid like a lost puppy. The giant was covered in the blood of what they believed was Acromantula, but more importantly tiny almost imperceptible amounts of their friend essence on his feet's alongside a mass of others horrid odours.

He knew that he needed help to find Ron quickly and wandering in the entire forest trying to find a fraction of Ron was taking too much time for their taste. So he looked at each girl on the eyes, using the new ability to use the cat's energy to launch messages between them without the need to open their mouths.

"_We might use Hagrid's help to find Ron." _He enquired, trying to ask them for their opinion of this idea. Luna frowned while Hermione seemed pensive, both a sign that they were at least considering his idea. Luna was the first to answer.

"_It could be dangerous; after all we don't know how that giant might react to our presence. And Hagrid on the other hand it's a wild card Harry, he is loyal to you, that I will not deny."_

Hermione completed the rest of the message, _"But he is more loyal to Dumbledore, we knew that he might have been on a mission, so he might be in a hurry to reveal what he had discovered to the Headmaster, and we actually don't know if he wouldn't try to detain us with the help of the giant, especially to 'save and protect us' of the danger of the forest. I am sorry to say this Harry, but the risk of this exploding on our face it's too much to consider it." _

Harry nodded, at least comforted that he wasn't the only one feeling that, _"Fine, then we need to follow their old trail, it should be easy now thanks that the giant has some of Ron essence on his feet." _Each girl nodded quietly walking toward the trail of the giant as they slowly disappeared on the distance.

Half an hour later they discovered a grim sight, at least one thousand of carcasses where in front of them, all of them being Acromantula, the blood, parts and guts of the arachnids covered every inch of the forest, destroying any possibility of finding any trace of Ron.

What's worst was that a great deal of living Acromantula was cannibalizing the bodies that were not crushed or fried in such a struggle. He slowly told the girls to quietly step back to not call their attention as their where outnumbered greatly, but the sudden discharge from one of them told him that they were already noticed.

Harry growled in anger as at least twelve arachnids pounced upon him while the girls where fighting who know how many at his back. He extended his hands and as quickly as he could he poured his electricity upon the beast killing at least six of them on the act while the rest seemed slightly disturbed by his display of power.

He pounced upon one of them slicing the carcass as swiftly as he could while he drained in mere seconds the magical energy of the beast with his left hand; he raised his right one and discharged another flash of energy. He maintained the attack until he noticed a new current of electricity joining his and quickly taking the shape of a translucent Lioness followed closely by a Snow Leopard. At his back he could hear and smell both girls in human form while they were shouting and enchanting as much as they could.

He knew that separating themselves from their cats was risky but in this situation they didn't have any options, so he quickly set free Jäger on the spiders when he took upon his human form. Slowly searching for his wand even if he was feeling much more drained in this shape.

"_Reducto, Tarantella, REDUCTO!" _He casted, quickly joining the girls side to prevent any surprise. Then Luna finally screamed, "Guys — _Stupefy_ —I need you to cover me for at least two minutes…"

"I hope you know what you are doing Ick— _REDUCTO…_ — a mistake and we are done." Hermione said she tried to prevent the onslaught of the spiders to overwhelm them in the earth, knowing that the cats were burning everything that tried to pounce from the trees.

Harry on the other hand screamed, "DOBBY WE NEED HELP." Making the elf appear almost immediately to protect the three young magicians while they tried to recover some of their energies, Luna meanwhile was slowly enchanting in a low voice moving her wand from one point to another trying to put a complicated spell on use.

Hermione gasped loudly, trying to catch some of her energies while calling Renata to her, knowing that she couldn't stand to be separated anymore. Said cat changed into a lighting bolt and quickly impacted upon the body of the brunette, Harry slowly capturing her falling form on his right arm looked at Luna who was seeing that Dobby was slowly being overwhelmed by a Spider that seemed to be the leader of the bunch.

Luna actually growled in the direction of the huge spider as she unleashed a line of fire upon its body for at least five seconds before Persephone impacted on to her back signalling the end of her magical energy.

The spell died instantly and Harry caught Luna with his other hand ignoring the hisses and screeches of the burning beast a few meters from their position. Hermione who was absorbing some of the forest energy quickly took the defensive position alongside the blonde while Harry quickly called upon Jäger when he began to feel too weak to even stand.

A lightning impact later he too was absorbing the energy of the forest while the spiders were trying to put and end to the fire that was consuming what probably was Aragog's mate.

He was about to unleash another discharge when an arrow suddenly impacted upon one of the spiders, followed by another and another. The girls gasped in terror when they recognized that the centaurs were approaching the battle. Harry knowing that they were in big problems immediately transformed into his beast form and ordered the girl to follow him while he screamed at Dobby to come with them.

In a rush of power they leaved behind the battle knowing that at least a bunch of Centaurs where behind them, an arrow that almost took the head of Hermione by mere inches was the prove they needed.

Angry at the action Harry began to drain the forest from its energy launching in the direction of the centaurs a huge amount of electrical power that quickly caused the trees to explode and combust, screams and warnings at the other side were suddenly heard. Then without notice Luna impacted upon him interrupting the flow of electricity and saving his life as one arrow missed his head and impacted upon her shoulder.

Her scream of pain was heard clearly by the archers, who then were took by surprise by the sudden appearance of an Elf at their sides that began to launch an unexpected attack upon them, Hermione knowing that Harry and Luna were too tired and hurt to continue immediately pounced in the direction of the screams while she drained the fires, the trees, the leaves and the flowers from their energy leaving a brown path as she run by them.

With a scream she ordered Dobby to leave while she launched all the energy she had on her body to fry the creatures that tried to take away her mates. Four screams and a Pop later, she was breathing heavily in exhaustion on to the floor, feeling that her life was slowly being drained away by how much she had abused her body.

She collapsed upon the ground, hearing the call of Harry at her back, a few seconds later he found her there unconscious, he growled at the corpses knowing that he didn't have much time before the partners of those buggers come to the scene. He took the girl upon his shoulders ignoring how much his body was protesting for the effort. And began to run in the direction where he had ordered Dobby to set the magical tent, knowing that they needed to hide from the forest for a while.

Once he found the tent he saw that Luna was absorbing the energy of a tree leaving it completely dry to accelerate the healing on her shoulder. He began to transfer some of his energy into Hermione knowing that the girl has dangerously depleted her own. Sadly the rest of the Centaur herd seemed to be approaching their position so interrupting the healing process of Luna he caught her attention and directed her at the tent while he put Hermione on the floor.

He changed back at his human form, taking his wand and enchanting "Protego" over the girls in case the Centaurs discovered the tent and fired arrows at them with the intention to end their lives.

As the minutes passed and the attack never happened, he lowered his defence, now putting his attention on Luna who was still bleeding.

She looked at him, "I need to charge myself Harry, and I am too low to cure this." He looked at her and put his hand on her own, launching the rest of his energy to her who gladly accepted it to ease her pain. Once the wound was closed he let her hand go, knowing that he couldn't expend all of his energy with her while they were still in danger.

Dobby then appeared over the entrance of the tent, mounting guard without an order, Harry knew and saw how exhausted was the elf, but he hasn't other options.

He finally put himself in the middle of the two tired girls, losing consciousness almost as fast as Luna had thanks to how tired he was feeling. He could just hope that the Centaurs couldn't find the tent even if the protections were much weaker thanks to him.

**XxX**

**T**he tiger saw in the distance the huge amount of energy being expended, he snarled knowing that a rival had appeared on his territory trying to claim what was his by right. At his side the Panther hissed it seemed that she didn't liked either the intrusion. Both knew that they weren't on their best, but that after such amount of energy being expended by the intruder he or she wasn't either.

They slowly descended and began to run into the direction of the battle, its was a long way to go and they probably needed at least two hours to reach their destiny, so they began to drain the forest to replenish their own leaving behind of them a trail of dry flowers, bushes and trees.

They needed to protect their territory at all cost; the tiger looked at the sky seeing how the full moon was appearing on the horizon, he snarled knowing that a few pest could appear now if they weren't careful. The panther agreed with him, and they began to decrease their pace, they sniffed the air and with a low snarl of anger recognized that they were being tailed.

The tiger was about to launch itself toward the approaching wolves, when the panther snarled at him, prompting him to follow her into the direction of the other cats, trying to put those wolves on to the job of slayers to the invaders.

**XxX**

**G**reyback growled in anger when the cats began to move from the mountains, he slowly began to direct the rest of his pack toward them trying to catch them unaware but the felines only seemed to increase their pace being more agile than them on this kind of environment.

He howled knowing that they had been discovered and began the hunt, knowing that they had the advantage on numbers and power. It was just a matter of endurance and he was not going to let such a prey to escape his claws.

**XxX**

**H**arry woke up at the sound of Dobby angry screams; it seemed that the protections of the tent weren't enough against the Centaurs. The little elf was trying to maintain the enchantment that maintained the tent working while they were still inside, probably knowing that it wasn't a good idea to be inside when they collapsed.

Hermione and Luna groaned, too tired to fight anymore, he needed a way to recharge himself and the girls without putting the decaying enchantment in more stress. His instincts made him look at Dobby who was for all he cared at that moment, a battery from whom he could extract enough energy for him and the girls. The only cost would be the life of the elf, his life for theirs. He shook his head knowing that he could not betray the little bugger like that. He heard a little explosion behind his back and saw what appeared to be quartz slowly cracking and falling apart.

He knew that he hasn't anymore time, he took the girls on to his arms and began to run in the direction of the forest, leaving behind the tent and Dobby who immediately followed his departure. Once in the outside he and the girls were instantly surrounded, and he clearly heard the order to kill the elf.

He was about to scream an order to flee toward Dobby when the sound of a Howl was heard in the area. It was closely followed by other, then another and so on. The centaurs looked at their direction seeing them almost about to fall in any second of exhaustion.

He heard the order to retreat knowing that four of them weren't enough to fight against such a great pack. They began to run leaving them there with only Dobby who was himself about to collapse of fatigue.

Harry looked at the sky trying to find how much time had passed before they were discovered, but the trees were blocking the firmament.

He saw that the girls were slowly charging thanks to a bush that was nearby; he put himself on his feet and began to direct himself over one of the bigger trees knowing that he needed to regain his force before they were ambushed by the pack.

The girls once they recovered enough to get on their feet's began to search for other trees to recharge themselves leaving Dobby in the middle of them, wheezing loudly over how much magic he had expended to save them. Harry heard the Howls again, this time they were closer than before, but what was alarming him was that he could actually feel two different energies running in their direction.

The gasp from Luna and Hermione revealed that they could feel them too, Harry snarled in annoyance, of all the times that they could encounter Ron and apparently Greengrass, this wasn't the one that they were expecting, Luna was apparently nervous while Hermione was shivering, they all were too weak to fight against two fully charged cats.

He snarled in anger at the mere idea of Ron trying to erase his mark and put his own over the girls, he tried to absorb much more energy from the tree but it seemed that he had depleted much of the energy in the last battle. The entire place was slowly dyeing thanks to them knowing that it would take at least decades to replenish this brown patch of death trees with new ones.

He looked in the direction of Dobby and frowned; sensing that Ron and Greengrass were at least half an hour from them, and then the voice of Hermione was clearly heard. "The quartz, Luna do you have more quartz on your house?"

The blonde girl smiled "A few of them are still there, not much but at least enough to recharge us a great deal." She looked at Dobby who was slowly rising himself even if barely, "I am sorry Dobby, but I need your help again, in the tower exactly on my room they are…" She hasn't even finished when the elf disappeared with an almost inaudible 'Pop', four minutes later he finally come back with four stones on his hands, he almost immediately lost consciousness and they all rushed at his side trying to see if he was even still alive.

Hermione checked the stones while Luna inspected the Elf seeing that it was only unconscious by the effort. She put him on the inside of a fallen tree knowing that she couldn't do anymore for him in her conditions. She took one of the stones and began to absorb the magic of the Fay.

All of them began to do the same; feeling at least recharged enough to fight for their lives, Hermione offered Harry the last stone knowing that he had more experience on the battle than the two of them united. It took them at least five minutes to consume the entire energy of the stones when they actually heard the approaching of the Ron and Greengrass.

Harry snarled not too content with his friend at the moment, and changed into the Were-lion, followed closely by Luna and Hermione, they all hissed and spat when they finally found themselves with a were-tiger and a were-panther, both creatures stopped their advance almost instantly at the amount of rivals that they had found on the site instead of the lonely male that they were expecting to find.

Almost as expected the Panther snarled in anger at the presence of more females, while the Tiger obviously had the intention to claim them following his instincts. Harry roared in anger at the mere idea of the Tiger, and they began to run toward the other each feline consumed into their own desires and instincts.

The panther hissed and snarled angrily toward the females that were putting on risk her position as alpha and began to run toward them when a huge werewolf leaped of the bushes and impacted upon her side trying to bite the neck of the cat in the process, the panther snarled furiously at the wolf and discharged part of her electricity frying the wolf in the process from the insides out in seconds, the animal howled in pain apparently still alive even after such an attack.

The panther being in a much better position than the wolf began to drain the animal of its energy knowing that much more of them were approaching the area.

One leaped upon her back just to be impacted with lighting upon its chest thanks to the Lioness, the Snow Leopard on the other hand began to run toward the trees knowing that she could have an advantage over the creatures if she climbed and pounced over them. But three wolves pounced upon her causing her to deplete a great deal of her energy to save her skin. The beasts all began to fall around her all whimpering in pain while the electricity ran over their bodies. She snarled angrily when one of them slashed toward her interrupting her flow of energy, tired and in great danger she began to slash and bite all she could killing two of them in the process while a fourth one pounced upon her back slashing her fur violently.

The lioness then pounced upon the attacking beast slashing at his uncovered throat while the snow Leopard tried desperately to drain the beast of its magic and energy.

It was there that the rest of the pack appeared on the scene howling and growling in anger and blood lust, leading them in the distance was an enormous wolf with a grey back. The Lioness roared in anger and fear covering the fallen Leopard and seeing that the panther seemed to have disappeared on to the night.

The Roar seemed to awake Harry of his power struggle while he demolished the ground with a now apparently tired Tiger, both of them were covered in slashes and where bleeding heavily, he tried to leave the fight only for the Panther to pounce over him trying to get him away from her mate.

The Lion roared in pain as the Panther began to slash and bite his back before he angrily unleashed a great amount of electricity that began to overwhelm the felines near him.

Harry lost his transformation as Jäger leaved his body and pounced over the Panther then the Tiger apparently taking advance of the distraction. The Lioness on the other hand snarled toward the rest of the wolf pack who were slowly approaching her and Hermione who seemed to be failing to recharge herself thanks to her injuries and had lost her own transformation.

The brunette was trying to find her last forces to cast a spell upon her injuries but was still too worried by the approaching wolves to do it correctly.

The Lioness remembering one of the movements of Harry a few hours later extended her arms toward the wolves that finally pounced toward her and immediately unleashed all of her energy impacting at least four of the seven beasts.

Three of them including Greyback escaped the electricity and tried to maim her with their teeth and claws when the body of the tiger impacted upon them interrupting their travel and saving the now terrified Luna. Harry who had casted_ Wingardium Leviosa, _on the quickly recovering Tiger and then launched said animal toward the wolves that were about to kill his alpha slowly gasped as an intense pain began to encroach his chest. As Jäger was defeated by the Panther and rudely returned to his body.

The panther was about to pounce upon him when the roar of the Tiger engulfed her attention, it seemed that he had defeated two of the three remaining wolves only to be pummelled by the more experienced Greyback. The black feline snarled and began to run toward the wolf and pounced over him only to be intercepted in the air by a strong swing of the front claws of Greyback.

She fell loudly on the ground bleeding heavily and to the surprise of everyone slowly returned to her human shape revealing the damaged figure of Greengrass. The Tiger roared and in a last attack launched all his energy toward Greyback who evaded the attack easily.

Slowly the Tiger finally began to lose its power over his human part and slowly changed back to Ronald Weasley, who fell on to the floor unconscious thanks to the effort. Greyback howled in victory and slowly approached the exhausted form of Luna who was trying to protect Hermione with all her might. Harry tried to stop him but the pain was too much for him to do anything else.

In a final leap the giant wolf pounced on Luna only to stop suddenly in the air mere meters of the girls, it tried to get free but the sudden impact of at least five silver knives on to his body stopped all his struggles immediately.

Then another series of Knifes appeared all over the place and impacted in all the still alive wolves ending almost immediately their struggles to maintain themselves alive after being half cooked alive.

Harry gasped for a few seconds before he suddenly lost consciousness thanks to the impact of a spell. Luna saw with some incredulity the man that Dobby had brought on them. She didn't know if she was feeling betrayed or glad for his decision. Hermione tried to transform herself to no avail when another spell impacted upon the brunette taking her out immediately.

The man finally approached Luna, seeing her directly at her eyes; his eyes for the first time in her memory were not sparkling. They were cold, calculating and if she dared to believe condemning.

"Headmaster," Luna said before the man casted the same spell on her.

Albus on the other hand didn't lost any time to call his phoenix upon his shoulder, with a few movement of his wand, every of the fallen teens was summoned toward him, all floating mere millimetres of his body before he conjured a rope that enveloped all of them, he looked in the direction of the now wailing Elf as he called upon him to come with him knowing that he needed a great deal of help to save all of them.

Then with a flash of fire he disappeared from the scene, leaving only corpses that would soon be noticed by the Centaurs or other predators.

**TBC **


	14. Chapter 14

**Thanks to my Beta, B. A. Ware. For helping me so much with this chapter, give his story a shot if you don't mind.  
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**Now, I was uncertain if I should update this or not, as its pretty obvious that this story is now quite illegal on this site as it breaks the new guidelines pertaining violence and sexual activities. So, let's hope I don't get banned in the process before I end this story, especially as the next chapter is supposed to be the last one.  
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**If I get banned, then the only one thing I will lament is the lost of my Alerts, but then, quite a big deal of the stories that got my attention are now held as "Illegal material" as they touch a great deal of violence and sexual situations.**

**I will try to update the next chapter as soon as I can, so you all have at least an idea of the story, I am not pleased by the answers of many authors to end their stories there. But to each their own.  
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**I am seriously thinking on moving on toward Ficwad, I was considering Adultfanfiction, but that site is certainly domain of those that love Slash pairings, now more than ever that a great deal of the writers on this page had moved there.  
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**If anyone knows of other pages that can be of use, please tell me so.  
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**D**umbledore reappeared, slightly winded from the effort. He had to wait for quite a while, but once he recomposed himself, he looked around the old room made of finely cut white limestone. Immediately, his gaze went to the emblem in the middle of the eastern wall. Seeing it, even after all these years, still made his oldest wounds ache with nostalgia and regret.

After all, it was here that all of it begun. It was a sad reminder of a series of events from the past. Ones that shaped the present into what it was now. Dumbledore shook his head. It seemed that nothing has changed since then.

A groan to his left interrupted his recollection. Immediately, he raised his hand, ready to do whatever was necessary to contain the teens. He lowered it moments later, seeing just in what shape they were in. It was clear that none of them could move just yet, the battle against the werewolves having a greater effect on them than he previously thought. He sighed, knowing that he had to act quickly to prevent any unfortunate consequences.

He redoubled his efforts when one of his initial scans revealed large amounts of poison that could only come from Acromantula in their bloodstream, only to stop when he noticed that their bodies were fighting it off all by themselves. He was baffled that, even in their human form, the teens could withstand so much damage. Seeing that the only thing he needed to do was to help their regenerative powers, he summoned his personal elf, and told him to prepare a room for them.

When the children's wounds were taken care of, he told his elf to move them into their individual rooms, while he went to the storeroom. He decided that one night of good rest would be enough to get them through the worst of it. When he returned, the teens were in new, clean and undamaged clothes, resting comfortably in their beds. He went from one to the other, administering a Bezoar to help with the poison, and a dose of Drought of the Living Death, to prevent them from stirring in their sleep.

He was about to leave when he got the surprise of his life. Out of a sudden, the Lovegood girl sat in her bed. He stopped, mid-step, thinking furiously if, by chance, the Bezoar prevented the Draught from taking effect. No, it couldn't be, he decided. He made sure to apply the proper dose. He turned and went straight to her bed to find out what could be the reason for this, just to have the girl snarl and hiss at him. He stopped again, thus reducing the noise the girl made to a low, angry growl. As much as he didn't want to do this again, he sent a stunner at her...

Only to get the surprise of his life when the spell didn't connect with her body, but lost it's colour and glow with every inch it got closer to the girl, until there wasn't even a whisp of energy left. Not only that, but the magical bindings he put in place to prevent them from escaping suddenly weakened by a great deal. He couldn't quite understand why, since they were meant for a person stronger than the teens, even at their best.

Suddenly, a thought occurred to him, and his eyes widened at the possible implications. To test his theory, he fired three stunner's in rapid succession, having a backup containment plan already prepared in the back of his head. It wasn't necessary, because the combined power of the spells managed to break trough the aura the girl was emanating, and knock her unconscious, just as the bindings on her body failed completely.

Albus sighed, reapplying the bindings. He would have to thread carefully, since, as it was, the informations he gathered from the ghosts and the elves in the school didn't even seem to be the start of what these children could do.

Their ability to convert magic troubled him the most. In the magical community, it was probably the ultimate power. To leach magic from all those around, or even vanish wards by simply reducing their energy. It was probably a secret dream of every wizard, to have that power at ones fingertips, but there were still more than few of them who would actually go to any lengths to get it, not excluding experiments of the vilest type.

That thought only made him look at the girl lying in bed. He was a hypocrite and he knew it. How could he think about others ,when the things he was about to do could end up doing more damage than good. But, as much as he thought about it, he simply couldn't find another valid choice. Running the scenario over and over in his mind, his heart filled with grim determination, preparing to what he was about to do.

Still, one question lingered on his mind. Was it really the only option? Could he be wrong?

But he hasn't more options, not if they actually wanted to live in this now degrading world of theirs.

He shook his head to prevent himself from falling into the argument he considered more than a thousand times. Instead, he called his elf, and was surprised when he appeared with a whip like noise, and panting slightly on the spot.

Albus looked the elf over. The small creature was at his side for many years, back from the times when he was still a teacher. He remembered when he bought him from his previous master, one that constantly mistreated him, complaining how he was no good for anything. Having many scars, and having lost an eye and his tongue completely, the elf was still a great help, even if he could be grumpy at times. But in all the years they were together, Dumbledore could never remember him looking as tired and wrinkled as he was now.

"I see that you experienced the same surprise I had?" he asked when the elf finally managed to catch his breath. "I hope you haven't exhausted yourself while containing them?"

The elf didn't reply, simply straightened, standing at attention like he had done so many times before. Dumbledore smiled in admiration, seeing that even after everything the elf was through, he could still live with a human being nearby. That gave Albus a little hope, that, in the end, everything would be fine.

"Good, because we still have a lot of work in front of us," he said, his smile faltering at the mere thought.

He needed a way to prevent the ability from manifesting itself. Partly, to keep the children at bay while they were recovering, as it was too clear that they would take the first chance to escape, hurting themselves more in the process. But, more importantly, it was to prevent the children from unconsciously using it in public. By that time thought, such precautions probably wouldn't be needed anymore.

He stopped at a T-section, so deep in his thoughts that he nearly walked into a wall. There, right in front of him, was another emblem representing the Hallows. It only sealed the thought that was running through his head. The manacles, as harsh as that kind of treatment might be, were the perfect solution. They managed to keep Gellert in his prison all these years without an incident.

That thought only made him go back to the memories from so long ago. His youthful enthusiasm of studying magic, all the theories and experiments, and, of course, the man with whom he shared so much. What had happened to those days? Just what happened to that bright young man everyone called him back then... What kind of person replaced that boy?

Dumbledore shook his head, finally taking a turn. He refused to wallow in the past while there were much more pressing matters at hand. Stepping into the main laboratory, he glanced around, looking for all the things he might need. He knew for sure that one crucial thing wasn't there.

"Bring me the black trunk from my personal chambers in the Headmaster's tower," Albus said to the elf that had followed him.

The scarred creature stiffened hearing that. Up to this point, anyone, even the elves, was forbidden from even touching it, let alone moving it. That's why the elf needed a second to make sure that it's master really meant what he said.

Once the elf parted, Dumbledore put his attention on the work he had to do, only to be interrupted by a flash of fire. Fawkes appeared in his usual manner, with a song of mourning and reproach instantly filling the room.

The day itself had been bad enough, but with the melody tugging at his emotions, the mental walls Albus put up had collapsed, and the memories of the time he spent with Gellert came flooding his mind. The good times they had, but more than any time before, the deeds they did when power clouded their minds and they knew no better.

He thought himself an idealist back then, but what he really was, was a despot. He knew that now. He knew that he was too much in love to actually see what they were becoming, and why he couldn't do anything, even after _that_ particular fight had gone awry.

Just like his memories changed to more mournful ones, the song the beautiful bird was singing changed to one of regret and redemption.

The moment was broken when a 'pop' announced that the elf was back. Dumbledore watched the trunk that Pen had set on the floor. One last sharp chirp was all that Fawkes managed to add to the subject.

"I know, my friend. I know that you do not agree, but it's the only way," Dumbledore replied, his mind finally set, to which Fakes replied by disappearing in a ball of fire.

Albus shook his head, putting all the 'what ifs' and 'could be' to the back of his mind. He opened the trunk, and among his most treasured belongings and old memorabilia from his past, he saw the thing he was looking for.

A simple, worn out leather bag contained decades of effort, both from his part, and that of his now gone companion. He opened it and stared upon the fine powder resting inside.

Aluminium.

It was probably the most important and useful element for transfiguration. Even though muggles learned how to refine it decades ago, the man made aluminium was suitable only for rough theoretical work. When it came to magical properties, naturally made aluminium was probably the finest material ever made.

Heated up by the raging volcanoes, struck into shape by the lightning itself, the naturally made aluminium seemed to be created to channel energy, and balance the forces that were used upon it. Unfortunately, the amount of it anyone could find were minimal, and even with a help of phoenix that was able to pick it up straight from the magma before the element was once again consumed by the molten rock, it took decades to gather the amount that Albus now held in his hand.

Two pounds of natural aluminium, and even that wasn't enough to complete the work. He would have to reforge the manacles if he wanted to finish what he had in mind. Still, first he had to reforge it into bars, to make sure that there wasn't any kind of impurity left.

Knowing that he wouldn't get much sleep that night, Albus started his work, hoping that what he was about to do wasn't the greatest mistake of his life.

**XxX**

**W**hen Hermione finally woke up, she was at first confused, then disorientated and soon into a wave of panic as she noticed that her hands were now held by manacles. The thought that they were the most beautiful and complicated manacles that she had ever seen did little to take her mind away from the uncomfortable feeling of being chained.

Worst of all, she couldn't hear Renata. No matter how much she tried to reach her own cat, it was impossible for her. For the first time in a long time, she found only her own voice filling her mind. Even if she hoped for it before, now she cursed the fact that it had to happen under those circumstances. Right now, it only deepened the feeling of solitude that crept into her bones.

She tried to recompose herself, to recover her wits and try to understand what had happened to them. Where they captured? By who? And what are their intentions? Those, and many more questions filled her mind.

To stop herself from panicking, she concentrated on what she knew. Taking one glance around, she saw that her room was small and little dusty, which could mean that the place was unused before someone brought them here. Then the symbol on the wall caught her attention. She didn't knew what it could mean. Even if she knew that wizards liked to wear strange symbols, her experience in recognising those wasn't the best.

Then she finally noticed what she wore. New clean clothes she didn't remember putting on covered her body, and she could feel bandages wrapped securely around her wounds. She didn't knew how much time she was out of combat, that being the last thing she could actually remember. Then she was once again consumed by her own fears and doubts, especially focused on the idea of her lovers, of Harry and Luna.

A stray thought hit her, stopping her in her tracks. In fact she was surprised of what she was feeling... or rather not feeling at all. When she always tough of Harry and Luna, she usually think of them as her superiors, her leaders, and most of all, her lovers. But now she wasn't feeling the same. Could it be because she didn't have Renata whispering into her ear? Suddenly she was feeling annoyed and slightly betrayed by how much influence the cat had over her actions this past months.

She knew that it was a terrible time to think of her love life, but this at least was something she could figure out. Wondering who had captured her, or what happened to her friends would be even more hopeless without any kind of information.

She certainly loved Harry, and to some extent Luna. But right now she wasn't so sure anymore. Were her feelings her own or were they caused by Renata? Again she had the same doubts that she had before when she asked for more time. But this time, she wasn't as attracted to Ron as she previously tough she was. This time she needed to be honest with herself and think what had happened to cause this.

When she discovered his escapades, at first, she tough of accusing him. After all he was committing a great break in the rules of the Weasley house, but then she remembered what had happened the last time she had done something similar, only with a broom, and decided to do the busting herself. After all, if she could make him see the light without Molly finding about his escapades, he could begin to see her in a different light, and who knows what could have happened between them in the forest, all alone and without any kind of supervision.

What she didn't expect was to find him seeing another girl. At first she was feeling betrayed, and actually angered that he was flirting with her on the day, and doing who knows what in the night with a harlot that she was sure she had seen somewhere before.

Then she began to spy on him, and before she knew it, she was actually peeping on them while they danced. She flushed a little at the memory, but she used to do many other things under the invisible cape that she had borrowed from Harry. She wasn't made of iron, and the sight of Harry completely naked had caused a great deal of tension to her that she had let out in the most delicious of ways.

Sadly, she wasn't as invisible as she tough she would be, and before she knew it, Luna was in front of her, asking her question after question, literally capturing her with her panties down.

She couldn't remember all the questions, not when she was about to explode, excitement, shame, fear, hope and a myriad of other emotions battling to control her in that moment.

But she could at least remember the most shocking of her questions, "I think I like him, and might grown to love him." the blonde said, glancing towards Harry, "Would you mind if you share him with me?" The way she bluntly asked such a thing surprised her greatly, and naturally she denied with her head, as her own voice failed to work in that instant.

She wasn't the kind of girl that shared her love.

The slight frown that appeared on the beautiful blonde's face was worrisome, and before she knew what was happening, the girl kicked a bunch of Fairy powder upon her face, bathing her entire body with the glistening substance. She coughed after that, and was about to give her a piece of her mind when a heat began to spread all over her body. She became aroused as she had never been before. It was almost painful, and before she knew it she was pleasuring herself in the presence of the blonde, who looked at her with her big round eyes.

"This powder is created while the Faeries mate. It's pure desire, probably designed to increase the ovulation in the females in the party. It's a well know aphrodisiac in the magical world, it increase the sexual desire of those that inhale it. Sadly, humans use it with other more sinister intentions, but in my case, its useful to wake up a girl that doesn't seems to know what she wants."

The blond then raised her hand and softly caressed Hermione's cheeks, making her tremble in ecstasy. Then continued.

"Don't worry, the effect doesn't last more than thirty minutes, I want to have a especial night with Harry without you intervening and interrupting our intercourse, after that, I know that I will not be competition against you, not when he held you in his heart as he had been doing for years. You two only need a push in the right direction to cross that barrier that both of you have raised."

Hermione could clearly remember now what had happened that night. How she couldn't stop herself, much less how she couldn't stop seeing the scene in front of her. She was aroused by the beauty of the act, by the effect of the powder, and, to her own shame, by her own desires. Those that she didn't even knew she had.

Then something seemed to change in the blonde after she shagged with Harry. The apparently insecure girl seemed to ponder something now, looking in her direction as if she had reached another conclusion than what she had told her a few minutes ago. She tried to raise her voice to protest, to alert Harry but she couldn't. Not when her body was full of so much ecstasy.

The blonde now clearly identified as a Hogwarts student, a slightly insane Ravenclaw one year behind herself uncovered her and before she knew it, she was accepting everything they wanted her to do, She actually was losing her mind with desire, and Harry seemed to be close to do the same, then she was suddenly surrounded by light, and an endless space that seemed to be the afterlife.

Two felines appeared before her. A Snow Leopard and a tiny little Taffy cat besides the huge predator, one actually similar if not the same that Bulstrode had.

They both implored her to listen to them, and listen she did. She was afraid, but understood the need of the animals survival. In fact she understood that the Taffy cat was a repressed part of herself that she had accidentally created during her second year, and which then had to be suppressed so she could recover her human shape again.

She couldn't continue to repress that part of herself, much less let the poor Leopard perish when it had just been born. She accepted and prepared herself to be a host when suddenly someone appeared behind her and bit hard on her neck. She screamed as this seemed to increase whatever she was feeling in the real world. Enough to affect her even in this place where she couldn't be sure if she could actually feel anything.

Then she heard the words, "I am the Alpha, not you. I understand your feelings and fears of loneliness better than anyone in this world, but I can't not let you take Harry away from me. I need to suppress your power a bit, enough to be more submissive, nothing more. I will not prevent you from joining us, as I could win a friend and another lover in the process. But for that to happen you can't be your domineering self."

Following those words, a second rush of power flowed trough her, changing something that she couldn't exactly explain in words.

That explained why she was so disconnected from Renata after she gained an amount of power over the feline, especially when she began to ignore the beast for a few weeks, until the beast began again to affect her mind and actions constantly. That explained why she was so, submissive when Luna was involved in, and why she had accepted this kind of relationship so easily when in the past the mere idea would have been repulsive and offensive.

She tried to think for herself now, trying to ignore how betrayed she was feeling, of course, all of this to occlude the feeling that she might be the last survivor.

Luna certainly did manipulated her, she used her intelligence and knowledge to act against her, she attacked her weak points, and prevented her from retaliating in a fair manner. Did she truly love her? She wasn't sure at the moment, not when she was feeling slightly resentful for how she had been changed to never win a battle against the blonde.

Did she hate her now? That was a no, she might be angry at the girl, but aside from that night when she literally showed her in that powder, Luna has never actually forced her to do something that she didn't liked or wasn't desiring. She actually just opened avenues in herself that she had been suppressing for years, especially how much she enjoyed the idea of being used by her loved one.

The pre-cat Hermione would have repulsed the idea, considering it another way to degrade her, the mere mention would have offended her so much that she would have cursed badly the poor soul that proposed it. The post-cat Hermione actually was independent, but loved to be with her mates, they didn't humiliate her, or degrade her in any way, the form they showed they power over her wasn't deplorable or degenerate. They just showed her with their actions how they were her leaders, and she had loved every second of it.

Yes, she loved to be dominated, not humiliated, and none of them had abused of that privilege, and they had not only the power, they had the opportunities to humiliate her, especially when she was openly opposing them. But they still heard her, and had the patience to stand her ego, in fact they still trusted in her words and knowledge.

She then began to think of her feelings, she wasn't happy with Luna's actions, what happened was close to rape, too close to be comfortable, but then she remembered her words and explanation about the Faerie powder, she had been breathing that thing from the first day she followed Harry on to the forest, that time she had barely keep his pace, especially when he began to grown and to sprout a tail of all things.

She thought at first that he was undergoing the ritual of Animagus, he is reckless enough to try that after knowing about his Godparent. But when she finally found him minutes later, he was human again, and he wasn't doing any kind of ritual that she hasn't heard of, but he was seeing a girl. At first she was mad, of course but from that moment she had been inhaling the powder, and that explained why she didn't bust him with Molly.

Probably explained why her fantasies began to change from Ron toward Harry. She had certainly opened her eyes to how sexually attractive Harry could be, something that she had never considered before. Not because he wasn't attractive, but mostly because her old self has this pre-conceived idea of an ideal male. Tall, handsome, considerate, intelligent, tactful, and many other things. So far, only Krum seemed close to that standard. But before she knew it, she was looking at Ron in that way, in fact she was trying to change him into her ideal of a man.

An almost impossible job, as Ron certainly covered tall and handsome, but he severely lacked tact, consideration and while certainly he wasn't an Einstein, he was at least smart enough to learn new tricks.

Hermione smiled, locking her hands together, trying to ignore the sound of the chains that clashed between them when she did so.

She couldn't have been suffering from Stockholm syndrome, could she? She wasn't exactly attacked, but Luna could have been more, subtle with her intent. And she had been desiring Harry for weeks after that night, probably thanks to the powder.

But then she wasn't surrounded by that particular powder in the school, and even when she clearly tried to get away from them, she couldn't, she simply couldn't get to like Ron as she used to, he was just a pale replacement of Harry, and not mattering how much she tried, she simply couldn't like him as she was liking Harry at that moment.

The fact that it hurts to see him with Luna told her that she was still attracted to him, so that explained why she clearly began to dare the blonde for the position of Alpha, sadly Luna had tough of that, and before she knew it, she was being again dominated by her, and worst of all, she was liking every second of it too. It was in that moment that she knew that she liked them both, even if that confused and scared her a great deal.

Yes, she was a mess, no, all of them where a mess, but they were hers, and she was theirs, that actually didn't changed at all. But the next time she saw Luna, she would give her a piece of her mind, after all, they still needed to define a true Alpha now that they are both on equal terms.

The mere idea made her sob, she was scared, about what departed the future for her, and about the destiny of her mates. She was in fact feeling alone and abandoned now that she hasn't Renata with her. Yes, she was theirs, but next time, they will found too that they were hers too.

They just needed to rescue her from wherever she was at the moment.

**XxX**

**W**hen Luna finally regained conscience, she immediately understood that something was horridly wrong, especially when she couldn't feel Persephone any more. And that certainly scared her a great deal, but when she noticed the manacles on her writs, said fear suddenly become terror as she finally understood that her companion was sealed at the moment at the same time that her own magic.

"Mistress, Lovey-good is awake, Dobby is happy," said a weary and tired voice from the left of her own bed, she immediately recognized it as Dobby's voice, and she felt a tiny fraction of hope cross her body at his presence.

That soon vanished when she finally put her eyes upon him, he looked terrible, his hands were bandaged and seemed to be bleeding into the bandages, his chest was full of scorch marks and hideous lacerations, but worst of all he was missing half of his left ear, and the badly treated edge only revealed the work of a serrated knife doing a mess on the appendage.

She looked at him in horror, "Dobby, what happened to you? Who, WHO DID THIS!" She was enraged, more than she had been in her life, Dobby was such a good creature, how could anyone want to damage him so much? Then she finally remembered seeing Dumbledore's face before she was captured, making her blood boil in anger.

"Dumbledore will pay for this, I swe-" The squee of terror from Dobby immediately interrupted her from taking an oat of vengeance toward the man. No one could live if they hurt her loved ones like this.

What she hear next stooped her on her tracks, "It was I who did this, Missus Lovey-good. Not the Headmaster." She looked at him aghast, why, why would Dobby commit such an atrocity when she had specifically ordered him to... Then she understood. He had been the one that had called Dumbledore. He had guided the man she was most wary in the world toward them, and most probably the man that not only saved them from an hideous demise, but certainly the one that captured them for who knows what.

She inhaled, now understanding the damage upon his body. He had been punishing himself constantly since that moment. He had betrayed them to save their lives, and, sadly, he was the one that put them in this situation. She reached the most logical of solutions. "Dobby, from now on, you are not my elf any more." She could heard the whimpering from the creature, and quickly added, "You are not my elf, but my friend, my family, my saviour. And I can not stand the idea of a member of my family torturing himself in such fashion. I don't want you to ever do that to yourself again, much less ask others to inflict damage to you. Please, I beg of you to promise me to never do something like this again."

Dobby nodded painfully, trying to contain his tears, but it wasn't enough for her, "I want to hear it Dobby. Promise me that you will not do that to yourself again, please."

"Dobby promises, missus Lovey-good, Dobby promises to never do it again."

She smiled, trying to be reassuring, "Good. Now tell me what you can about what is happening." She knew that they might have been under surveillance, probably by others elves, and mostly she knew that Dobby might not actually be on the best terms with the other elves after what he had done for a second time against his master. And she doubted that Dumbledore would be so kind to tell the little elf an inkling to his plans.

But hearing the voice of the elf was calming and reassuring to her in a certain sense, she didn't liked to be alone, not after being accompanied all these months. She didn't want to fall again into that world of imaginary creatures that filled her life to cover her own misery. So while listening to Dobby's voice, she began to think her situation over, and what they might need to do to get out of Dumbledore hands.

Sadly, the voice of Dobby quickly reached and end on his diatribe, so she asked him something else, trying to find reassurance in the company more than knowledge in the information that he displayed. She just needed more information, more knowledge in her situation to think of a way to get out of it. Even if she knew that against Albus Dumbledore, she hasn't a chance to end up as the winner.

**XxX**

**H**arry was pacing back and forth on his room, trying to find a way to escape this apparently nice prison. He was going mad. He needed to know if the girls were fine. If Ron and Greengrass were fine, and of course if they were in the same situation as he was. They were probably just as worried about him. Especially Hermione and Luna.

The fact that he was in new clothes, and lacking his wand and his magical powers worried him a great deal. His mind was full of terrible toughs of what could have happened to the girl. In fact, the idea that someone had put his hands on them to change them as they had done to him was maddening.

His room was in disarray, his hands and wrists where bleeding lightly at some points thanks to how many times he had banged the manacles against any kind of surface to break them and get free. But so far, they had showed to be actually more resilient than their appearance showed. He re-assumed his pacing, trying to think of a way to rescue the girls and get out of this mess that he had put his friends into.

Frustrated, he began to kick the wooden door, with the hopes that his efforts would bring it down, but so far he had only damaged his own ego. It seemed far easier in those series that Dudley used to see on the television when he was in the house and not with his friends.

He wasn't as big as the blokes that usually did that, but to bring down a door you didn't needed that much force, did you? It could be done, Hagrid actually did it the first time he saw him.

He frowned in annoyance when he didn't heard the Jäger's voice, telling him that Hagrid wasn't a pipsqueak of a man like him. He never thought that he would miss that pest until he finally understood that he was completely alone in the world again, just as he was when he was a little boy under the care of the Dursleys.

He began to pace back and forth again, when to his surprise the door seemed to move. At first he tough it was just his imagination, but when he saw movement again he knew that someone had heard the ruckus he had made, and had come to put him in his place. He prepared himself to fight if it was necessary, and in fact, once the door was finally open he launched himself at whoever was opening it in the first place, only to miss him and impact against the stone wall of the hallway. He groaned, feeling a little disorientated for a few seconds before he heard something at his back, and remembering his position he tried to get a piece of the bastard that had captured him and separated him from his friends.

What he saw was the ugliest of the elven kind that he had ever seen in his life. Not that he had seen that many of them, but actually this one was hideously scarred. It was missing an eye, a couple of fingers on his hands and feet and much, much more. He tried to think of who in his right mind would do so much damage to an elf like that? Then he remembered Dobby, and his need to inflict damage upon himself when he thought that he had betrayed his master, and began to think that maybe all those injures were self-inflicted.

Not a nice tough either. If Dobby ironed his hands and ears when he felt he had betrayed the Malfoys, what would have been the sin this elf thought he had committed to do so much damage upon himself?

The snap of tiny and scarred fingers in front of his face took him out of his thoughts. It seemed that the elf wanted to call his attention. Maybe it was helping him to escape from this place, as Dobby has done in his second year? Hopefully it wouldn't include the use of lethal force as the first believed was needed.

"What, what? You want me to follow you?" The creature nodded, and began to walk in the direction of the wooden doors at the end of the hallway. He quickly began to follow him, trying to be as quiet as he could. He wrongly believing that maybe the poor elf was trying to help him. He immediately saw that they were other doors, many of them. He tried to ask the elf if his friends were behind them, but the creature only looked at him pointlessly and signalled him to follow him again.

He was actually getting tired of the silent treatment, "Why don't you say something? What's going on?Where are we?" Only to shut up when said elf looked in his direction and opened his mouth, showing him the lack of a certain appendage that was supposed to go there. "Bloody Hell! They cut your tongue? What a bunch of bastards you belong with." That seemed to anger the elf, and in fact it had crossed his arms and looked at him nastily after that comment.

"What? It's true. Someone that damages a friend of his like that is a bastard in my book".

The elf seemed to understand his point, and in fact was moving his arms wildly in front of him, as if trying to explain his point of view. That only served to increase the anger that Harry was feeling toward the master of this poor mistreated creature. For the first time in his life, Harry understood what Hermione saw in S.P.E.W.

Then he became restless and forgot everything about the elf when he remembered his brown haired friend. He needed to rescue his friends, and quick. He couldn't be standing here, trying to understand an elf that couldn't answer him.

Then the door at the end of the hallway opened brusquely and Harry saw that Dumbledore was behind said door. "Oh, it seems that my timing was exact. The teens are finally awakening from their magically induced sleep. Hello Harry, I wish I could say it's a pleasure, but I could guess by the state of your hands that it isn't a good time to do so. Pen, thank you for notify the other elves about this situation. I was becoming rather worried that they had not awakened when I returned from the Wizengamont."

Harry was confused and dumbfounded, "Pen?" he asked immediately, trying to understand what was going on.

Dumbledore as always seemed to not take the estate of his mind seriously, "Oh, it's short from Pendlenton, I found the name that Armando gave him quite a mouthful, so I reduced it to Pen, he doesn't seemed to mind it, so it become the rule between the two of us."

Harry on the other hand wasn't interested in the story of the elf name, "Headmaster? What's going on? Where are my friends. Why am I manacled?"

The smile fell from the face of the Headmaster, something that worried Harry greatly, in fact he was feeling his stomach sink a great deal after he saw the change in attitude in the old man. "They are fine, Harry, I can assure you of that. In fact, they are all awake right now. Something that surprise me a great deal, some of the injuries that you people received should have killed you, especially the amount of venom that was in the bodies of Mister Weasley and Miss Greengrass." He looked in the direction of the elf, who nodded his head and began to move his hands in the air, while he looked at the ceiling.

At first, Harry tough that it was a senseless movement, but at least four 'Pop's where heard at his back and he was forced to turn back and see four normally looking elves opening four different doors at the same time. He tough that he recognized one of the elves but he wasn't sure. But as soon as they opened the door, screams and voices he hasn't heard in a while inundated the hallway. He quickly ran in the direction of the screeching Hermione, he listened to the voice of Ron and to his surprise of Greengrass. But more worrisome he couldn't hear the voice of Luna, so he immediately screamed their names. "LUNA, HERMIONE!" It wasn't that he didn't wanted to talk to Ron, but he was too worried by the estate of the girls to think of something else.

Soon the screeching stopped, and a load of questions suddenly inundated the hallway.

"Harry, is that you mate? What's going on?"

"Potter?"

"HARRY, WHERE ARE YOU!"

"Harry, I am glad that you could free us, quick we need to... oh." He was glad to hear that Luna was fine, and that she tough that he had free them, but the way she looked at the headmaster, while Hermione suddenly become slightly tense when she saw the blonde, was worrisome to him.

Ron finally reappeared in the hallway, looking shyly in their direction, "Harry, Hermione, What's going on?" he seemed to have finally recovered the control over his body, probably an after effect of the manacles that he was...

He quickly noticed that all of them had manacles, in fact he looked in the direction of Greengrass who hasn't emerged from her room and found here there, sitting on the bed, looking at the manacles in a resigned way. He quickly looked in the direction of the headmaster and asked. "Sir, could you get this things off? They are preventing the use of our magic."

But the way the headmaster closed his eyes, then opened and looked at him send shivers trough his back, Luna was the first to voice what he still couldn't.

"Harry, the headmaster will not take them out of us, he isn't here to free us, he is the one that held us."

Hermione gasped and slowly looked white at the mere idea, Ron stumbled upon his feet after he heard that from the blonde, and was in fact about to retaliate against her voicing such a horrid thing against Dumbledore when the man spoke. "I am afraid that Miss Lovegood is right Harry, I am not the saviour you expected, I am in fact something else, I am not here as your Headmaster, and I can't even presume to be your friend. But if you follow me, you will find the answers to everything." He looked at them at the eyes, one by one, at least those that had ventured toward the hallway.

"All of your questions." And once he said that, he just disappeared trough the door, only leaving Pen behind. The elf seemed to be still waiting for him to follow his lead.

He looked at the girls, trying to understand what was happening, when Luna said, "We were losing the battle Harry. We are powerful but inexperienced. Till now, we were lucky most of the time, and Dobby knew that better than us. - she looked at Hermione, then continued. "He saw that we were going to die there, and called upon Dumbledore in a desperate attempt to save us all. The Headmaster defeated those that we couldn't, quickly and swiftly, even the leader. But once he defeated them, he proceeded to stun those of us that were still conscious..." she said, looking them in the eyes. "When I regained consciousness I was manacled and in my room." she added, done with getting them up to speed.

Harry couldn't hate Dobby for doing the best he could. It wasn't his fault that the Headmaster seemed to have other plans with them. Looking at his friends, then at Greengrass who seemed to be trying to ignore them, he said. "I don't understand what's going on, or why the Headmaster is doing this, but I need to ask him many things. - he raised his hand, trying to stop Ron from interrupting him. "I know that he never had given a direct answer, but we don't have any other choice right now. We could only hope for the best. We... -he sighed, "we don't have other choices."

He began to walk in the direction of the elf, when he heard Ron ask, "Aren't you coming too, Greengrass?" Harry stopped his advancing when he heard the girl answer acidly. "Do I have any other choice? So far my life is over, I am a monster, least than human. If my father will ever get his hand over me I am finished, probably sold to the Triad to be chopped or displayed as a trophy for the best price."

Luna finally said, "I don't think that the Headmaster is in league with your father Greengrass, I know that you are confused and probably scared, but we are part of the same species now, we need to present a united front or we are all doomed from the beginning."

"I didn't asked to be part of this club, Lovegood, all of this is HIS fault, if he, if he haven't."

"What, If I haven't tried to help you? Remember who put you there on the first place, It was your own house who was planning on rape and murder, Greengrass. Did you expect me to sit and enjoy the show that Malfoy was planning? I might have transformed you against your will, but I wasn't me in the moment so I have an excuse. What excuse have your so called friends?"

"MALFOY TOLD ME THAT SHE WAS BEING RAPED, SHE HAVEN'T HAD ANY OTHER CHOICE,"

"So to save her life, she sold yours. What a good-"

Harry immediately grew tired of the discussion, "Quite, both of you," he said firmly and pointedly, This called the attention of the pair, especially Greengrass. "Look Potter this is isn't your-" her argument was stopped immediately when Harry banged his manacles against the door, surprising everyone with his actions. The elf just groaned in frustration when he saw that the boy has reopened his wounds.

Harry was breathing hard, he was furious by the sense of betrayal that Dumbledore has put on him, he didn't wanted to express or show that ire against his friends, they didn't deserve that.

He looked at Greengrass who was looking at him with a huge amount of surprise in her eyes, "Look Greengrass, we are not friends, hell I don't even know you aside from the rumours circulating in the school. And I don't trust them very much. But, if they are close enough to the real you, then you certainly are a smart girl. We are in a dire situation right now, we are captured by the most powerful wizard we know, we don't have access to our wands, much less our magic. We need each another urgently to have at least a modicum of hope against the likes of Dumbledore. So if you come with us, fine. If not, then you are on your own. Choose wisely." Saying that, he looked at his friends for a few seconds, noticing their looks of surprise were very much like the one that Greengrass wore. But at the moment he didn't care, even if his hands were killing him right now.

But as soon as he began to walk in the direction of the elf, all of them, including to his surprise Greengrass, began to follow him at a safe distance while he followed the elf. He frowned, and then sighed, he certainly didn't wanted to come as violently as he had.

He tried to make amends, "Look guys I-" but the sound of a door opening and creaking loudly cut off his voice. It was almost the classical sound you heard in Muggle Movies when you opened the door of an enchanted mansion. Scary, and it cut directly into your spine.

Soon he was seeing at the other side, seeing, to his surprise, a library. He walked in, and saw Headmaster, waiting for them patiently. He was in a huge chair that seemed to be the most imposing seat on the room. In front of him was a table of the most blackest of woods that he had ever seen in his life. As he got closer, his eyes immediately went to the middle as a symbol was carved into the wood, and then covered with white paint. It was the same symbol that he had been seeing on almost all the walls in this place.

On their side of the table where six seats, each apparently as comfortable as the one Dumbledore sat, only smaller. He didn't understand why the need of the extra. When he suddenly noticed that it was in fact, already occupied by someone that he knew pretty well.

"Dobby? What the hell happened to you?" He was aghast at the amount of damage that the elf displayed, in fact once he looked at the wounds, he immediately looked in the direction of the Headmaster, now losing all the hope that the man was what most people believed. "You are a monster..."

He was interrupted by Luna, "I am sorry to say this Harry, but the Headmaster isn't guilty of the injuries of Dobby. It's complicated, but I assure you, Dumbledore is certainly not guilty in that aspect."

Hermione was speechless, she looked in the direction of Luna, wondering, and about to ask her something when the voice of Dumbledore interrupted them.

"No, Miss Lovegood, Harry is certainly right on his observation, by many people I am a monster, my brother can certainly testify of it." He closed his eyes mournfully, remembering his only living relative, and the despise that the man had against him. Very well deserved, he always tough.

But then he opened his eyes, and moved his hands to show that he didn't have his wand near them, "I am only here to talk, we have many things to discuss, and once I finish, you have a decision to make, that will change the rest of your lives forever. But right now, you need answers and I am willing to give them, "

Hermione finally said, while she took her seat, "Sorry if I am not in such a believing mood, Headmaster, never have you given a direct answer, and your actions don't give me much reassurance about your honesty." She noticed that Harry took a seat at her left, right in the middle, while Luna took her seat at the other side of Harry, Ron and Greengrass sat in the only free seats, Greengrass trying to put Dobby between her and them in an obvious fashion.

Everyone cringed when Dumbledore hand disappeared on his robes for a short second, getting out of it his wand, Harry was about to jump to stop him from what ever the man was trying to do but to his surprise and of everyone else, no one of them could actually move from their seats. They were literally glued and at mercy of the man.

To the surprise of everyone, the man only said, "I swear on my magic and my life that I will not lie to Harry Potter, Hermione Granger, Luna Lovegood, Ron Weasley and Daphne Greengrass. So mote it be." A white flash suddenly appeared on his chest and after that, the man simply left his wand on the table, where everyone could see it.

Speechless, Harry tried to understand what was happening, when Dumbledore began. "First of all, I need to tell you of what is happening in the magical world, especially after you decided to rescue Mister Weasley by yourselves without any kind of help from the adults."

He ignored their immediate protest, then after a few seconds, finally said. "We are at war." Silencing every voice in the room with that.

Ron was the first to regain his voice, even if it was breaking a little, "Wh-what?" Immediately Greengrass interrupted him, "How could that be?" And Dumbledore decided to answer that question first.

"You must be aware Miss Greengrass, that the United Kingdom, especially its magic counterpart, isn't as safe as the Ministry try to sell it. In almost fifty years, several criminal factions have been rooting their bases on England to be more precise. The most know of this factions in recent years, had been the Death Eaters who thanks to Voldemort and his campaign of power, ended up being the more feared criminal faction of the world, slightly eclipsing other factions with their actions." The man inhaled, trying to explain himself at the best of his abilities. "Alas, they are groups than in fact flourish with the anonymity, and their is a particular group that flourished in the shadows of the Death Eaters, this one being know as the Triad. A group I guess you are certainly aware of, Miss Greengrass."

The teen immediately shouted angrily, "You bastard, I knew that you were aware of my situation, and didn't do anything to help me just because I wasn't sorted in the same house that your beloved Potter..."

The man frowned at her accusation, quickly saying, "I might look like an all knowing Wizard, young lady, but the truth is that I am not. This past days finally showed me the truth in the hard way that only life could offer. No, Miss Greengrass, I certainly didn't knew how corrupt this government has become, I was aware of it's failings, but not the extend of it. It was your sister who in a desperate attempt contacted me and confessed what your _progenitor_ has told her." He closed his eyes, still hearing in his mind the screeches of the terrorized girl.

Daphne looked at him warily, she hasn't the best kind of relationship with her sister, based mostly on how her father had treated them both. But that didn't mean that she wanted the little girl to suffer. "What, what happened to Astoria?"

Dumbledore smiled slightly at her question, "She is right now in the most secure place I could have put her in, I assure you that your father will not put his hands on her, as he wanted to. Alas, that move certainly cost me my position as Headmaster, and is right now slowly stripping me of all the power that I used to have. But be assured, I do not repent from my decision to save your sister."

Confused, Ron asked what everyone else was thinking, "What is going on? What does this have to do about we being at war?" Dumbledore sighed and inhaling quickly he began to explain again.

"I will reach a point where your question would be answered Mister Weasley, but I need to explain this portion first so you could understand how severe our situation is. As I was saying, they are factions that flourish in anonymity, but this time it seems that the Triad is in conflict with an old friend of theirs, in this case the Death Eaters. Let me explain it, in the last war, this two factions were silent allies, the Triad had no interest over what Voldemort was trying to reach, and in fact flourished with the chaos that the man was causing, capturing a great deal of people in the process to then be slaved and sold to the best price they would have. The kidnapping and disappearances were attributed to the Death Eaters, and helped to spread the fear that Voldemort needed to conquer once and for all. Then Voldemort was vanished by Harry and a particularly powerful ritual, that I later will explain. The government was trying it's best to recover itself from the damage, and in the reconstruction noticed that the kidnappings and disappearances keep happening when they were supposed to have stopped completely. - Dumbledore frowned, massaging the bridge of his nose ignoring how his half moon glasses seemed to be about to fall off his face, before he corrected them on their right position.

"The Aurors finally got hold of a tiny lead and acted upon it, what they discovered was a base full of recently disappeared people, they captured and condemned the guilty party, disarming the faction of the Triad for good in England. Or that is what we used to believe, as it seems that the Triad is back and certainly more powerful than before."

Daphne snorted loudly, "You fool, it isn't back, they never retired themselves from the island, they just focused their attention on their Muggles affairs, waiting for the magical world to forget about them, and forget they did. My father have at least four years negotiating with them my price, only the fact that I was already enrolled into Hogwarts prevented them from taking me earlier, but once I reached this year all bets were off, I was going to be sold to them in exchange of the worthless life of my Father, who owned them a great deal of money and hasn't the resources to pay back. My sister was sold then to Malfoy to be married to Draco when she reached the approved age, but as I assume, because of my disappearance, my father was forced to cancel the deal with Malfoy to give my sister to the Triad in exchange of his life."

Dumbledore nodded sadly, knowing as much thanks to Astoria, but then they was something that the young girl didn't knew. "What you don't know, and the reason for why I am telling you all of this, is that your father contacted Malfoy, and apparently told him of how a faction was trying to force him to rescind of Astoria, for themselves. Draco might not be alive but she was already sold to the family so she was legally their property, so Lucius didn't take very well this notice."

Hermione immediately said, "How barbaric, how could you Headmaster, with so much positions and power in the government let this kind of... of brutish actions to still be legal this days?"

Again the man exhaled loudly, apparently tired of how much people think that he was the one that made the world spin. "I might held leadership in the Wizengamont, Miss Granger, but that doesn't mean that I can make the laws as I see fit. They are people that believe in my ideals, and those that oppose what I try to reach. As long as those that oppose me surpass me in numbers when I propose a change or a law, I can't do anything. I can't force them, not will I reduce myself to bribes or magically coercion to get what I want."

Luna showed him her manacles, "What a good form to show that Headmaster."

"Alas, I am now between the sword and a hard place, Miss Lovegood, and I had to prevent any of you from using that ability of yours to devour magic, as any of you could cause this castle to collapse over our bodies and ending up our lives in a single instant."

Ron actually asked, "Then we are at Hogwarts?"

Dumbledore denied with his head, "Scotland is full of castles, Mister Weasley, certainly you don't think that Hogwarts is the only magical castle out there, do you?"

Harry finally said something, "Then where are we, Headmaster?"

"We are underground the Dry island, in a castle know as Tioram, rather know even in the muggle word, even if they just know a tiny fragment of the structure. We are in the old house of a friend of mine,"

Luna looking at the symbol on the table, said. "We are in one of Grindelwald houses aren't we?" Hermione, Ron and Greengrass gasped in surprise, looking with some fear and curiosity the whole place.

Harry frowned, not understanding something, "I though that you said this was the house of an old friend, was he killed by your enemy?" Dumbledore immediately denied that and said, "That's an story for another time, first we need to close what we where talking with, before we began another story, Harry, but do not fear, I will tell you everything."

Looking at Greengrass he said, "Your progenitor played the wrong cards, Miss Greengrass, and I am afraid that he ended up paying the price of it. It seems that the world thinks that you are death, even the goblins, so the whole Greengrass inheritance went to your sister, who's still hiding with two of my most loyal friends." Dumbledore then looked in the direction of Harry and began again, "Malfoy didn't like the fact that the Triad had killed a man that was certainly under his surveillance, especially when that man was indebted to him. So he began a campaign against them, openly gaining more supporters to his cause. Before we knew it, he was being nominated for the position of minister, and was the most popular choice. That angered the faction of Davis, enough to cause tension between the two bands, I tried to regain control of those few families that remained neutral, but then five girls were kidnapped from the school, five girls from the faction that supported Davis. Su Li, Mandy Brocklehurst, Lisa Turpin, Isobel MacDougal and Joan Kerridge. This caused the tensions to finally reach a limit and those families just declared a feud against Malfoy and all of those that support his cause, as they put the blame of such disappearances on him."

Greengrass snorted derisively, "You people are just awfully blind or just stupid, I can't decide. The Triad staged those disappearances, and is just fomenting a war upon our soil because they will have more chances to kidnap slaves for their business in the chaos."

Dumbledore looked at the girl, then asked, "And why do you think of that, Miss Greengrass? What information do you have that they don't?"

Again she snorted derisively, something that was beginning to get tiresome to the old man, "Because the family I was sold where the Li, and if the elves of my house where good at something, was spying on my father to protect me and my stupid sister, The Li family is the faction that leads the Triad in this part of the world. The fact that Su Li was among that list is prove enough that they are trying to incite a conflict to cover their trail again, and all of those fools fell into their trap, it's disgraceful."

Luna frowned, then said, "Those girls that were kidnapped, I can attest that Su Li was the leader of that particular group of girls, Su always seemed interested in the most isolated girls of Ravenclaw, including me, and she in fact didn't liked at all that I suddenly become so popular, her insistence towards me to leave Harry and join her group was becoming troublesome, in fact now that Greengrass finally revealed this, I understand that yes, we all have been duped by the façade that the Li family had over the entire society. Who would suspect of a family of apparently not so remarkable Magicians that doesn't seems to hold a candle to their rivals the Cho family?"

Dumbledore sighed, he like many had believed the family to be of not great importance, only being one of a great deal of normal families that aren't interested in anything more than to live peacefully.

Ron, apparently confused asked, "What I don't understand is where does Malfoy fit in all this? The Triad seems to benefit from him being Minister, so why oppose him? And do all this to provoke a war?" Hermione frustrated answered him.

"Because this time, Malfoy isn't interested in what they offer, if he is selected as Minister, and suddenly began to happen all those disappearances, it would be the end of his career as a politician, and probably of his ideals. What the Triad needs to benefit is conflict, but this time, Malfoy has actually the ministry on his pocket, it was just a matter of time, why fight for something that the people are willing to give you? Then, there is the problem with Greengrass little sister, she is an inversion, a matter of pride, and we all know that Malfoy is a prideful man. The fact that both leaders of those factions wanted to have a girl over the other's pride was probably the last straw between them. Malfoy will not submit to others that easily."

Dumbledore then intervened, "Sadly Miss Granger, I must tell you that the one moving the strings from behind Lucius is non other than Lord Voldemort itself, and by what I know of old Tom, he might have tried to make the Triad submit to him, as he is in need of followers at the moment. The Leader of the mountain, after so many years living as the boss of a well organized criminal faction, will not let his position, much less become the follower of the likes of Tom. Who want to exterminate his kind, for just being a half-blood."

Tired of the diatribe, Harry finally said, "This is all well and sadly tragic, but this doesn't answer why we are your prisoners."

Dumbledore nodded, and said, "With all this tensions, and the disappearance of those girls, I was seen unfit anymore for the position of Headmaster, so I left the charge in the hands of Minerva, I am right now being stripped of all my charges, this morning I lost my position in the Wizengamont, and soon I will not be the Supreme Mugwump anymore. The quarrel between the factions of Davis and Malfoy are now bloodied as some of the families had been attacked and slaughtered, especially those that oppose Malfoy, that divided his factions between those that think it was too much to erase whole families, and those that think that anything is necessary to reach the world they have been promised."

He looked at Harry and finally said, "The time has come for me to reveal you a prophecy that It doesn't only involve you, but your new power as well. Sadly, we don't have the required time to prepare you for it. We never had enough time to prepare you to oppose Voldemort and win."

Harry finally asked, barely containing his ire, "A prophecy? Why didn't you told me something of such importance in my life? And not enough time? We had plenty of time this last years, you knew that this was coming so why didn't you prepare me for it."

Luna narrowed her eyes before she concluded, "Because he hasn't the intention to train you on the first place, he wanted you to die Harry."

Dumbledore sighed and said, "_The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches ... born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies ... and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not ... and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives ... the one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies ..._" Those were the words that marked you Harry, I wasn't exactly sure of how this prophecy would happen until your second year."

Greengrass asked after a few minutes of silence, being the less shocked of the group, "His second year? What did you discovered three years ago that made you decide that he needed to die?" Her voice was even, she was shocked sure, but she needed answers, she couldn't blame the others tough, Potter was openly trembling on his chair, probably about to explode. Lovegood was looking at the ceiling letting her tears flow freely, Granger was openly sobbing, she seemed devastated by this turn of life, and Weasley was simply shaken into silence. Dumbledore on the other hand seemed to be searching into his pockets trying to reach something that could explain this mess.

Then Dumbledore put on to the table what appeared to be an old book, pretty battered and actually glaringly useless to her. "An stained book? That's all?" She looked in the direction of Potter, seeing him finally react at the mention of the book, it seemed that it was much more than a simple writing tool.

Dumbledore finally said, "When you showed me this dairy Harry, the dairy of Tom Riddle to be precise, you unknowingly gave me the answer to what had happened that Halloween in the 81. You already know about the ancient ritual that your mother performed upon you, that ended up saving your life against Tom actions. However, something extra was attached to you that day, unwillingly I must add, but in the end you ended up with a piece of soul on your scar, this is the real dairy, the one you gave to Malfoy was a well made copy, as the piece was nothing else at that moment that a simple book." He stopped for a second, letting all the information set before he began again, "At first I though that it was something without grave consequences, you seemed to be a healthy child, and it didn't seemed to be influencing you that much, aside from some rare gifts, you seemed to be Harry Potter and not a reincarnation of Tom."

Luna finally spoke, her voice barely a whisper, "Don't be redundant, go to the point," He nodded after hearing that, he couldn't lose more time rambling. "When you showed me the dairy, I knew that Tom has done the Impossible, he had used the most darkest of magic's to reach what he wanted, Immortality. He had divided his own soul and imbued some of his most priced possessions with it. The dairy being probably his first one." Dumbledore sighed then looked at Harry who even when he was glaring hatefully at him, was at least putting attention to his words.

"I tried to search a way to get that piece out of you without killing you, but my efforts turned fruitless. I can not do it without causing your death in the process, it can't be banished or exorcised as it's firmly attached to you, or should I say, it was."

Luna and Hermione finally looked at Dumbledore completely, so far them man has only given bad news after bad news, the old man nodded in their direction, confirming their suppositions, "It is as you think, Harry doesn't have any more a piece of Tom soul on his scar, in fact, not even a trace."

He looked at Harry firmly who finally said. "I guess I was actually death when that lightning struck me a few months ago, I guess Jäger was actually the best thing that could have happened to me in a while."

Dumbledore looked curious, "Jäger, a most interesting choice of a name, but then I need to continue, yes Harry whatever happened to you that day destroyed the piece of soul on your forehead, a most fortunate consequence, even if you lost your humanity in the process."

Ron hatefully said, "So that's why you are treating us like this? Because we aren't human anymore for you?" Everyone looked at Dumbledore waiting for his response.

"No, I do not have any problem with your condition Mister Weasley, nor do I have a problem with any of you just because you aren't human. I do not support Pure blood bias, it could be hypocrite of me when I am a mere Half-blood don't you think? The Blood might have magical proprieties, but it doesn't not determine how powerful you will become. That can only be attained with hard work Mister Weasley."

Harry finally asked, "There you go, answering with half truths again, if you aren't treating us like this because of our new status, then why pray to tell, are you doing this?"

This time Dumbledore face finally reached a displeased expression, "I am doing this to save the magical world -" Luna's laughter suddenly interrupted him taking everyone by surprise, Hermione was looking at the girl with open surprise, it seemed that she was the one that was taking the worst this situation.

Finally the girl said in barely contained anger, "What's is there to save Headmaster? Our society, our people? Our Culture? They are self-deluded fools who are only interested in their power quests, the strong always governing over the weak, those with power always getting away with what they want, because they can." She looked at him, glaring him as much as she could, "You are trying to save a world that doesn't deserve to be saved, you are a perfect example of that. We are mere pawns to you, sacrifices to be offered for the good of the wizardry world, a world that is governed by people that despise your ideals..."

"Luna, please enough" Implored Harry getting the attention of the surprised blonde, she looked in his direction seeing his face, then at Hermione looking how they were actually worried of how much this was affecting the girl, especially without Persephone along side her.

Hermione was about to tell her something when Dumbledore finally said, "And that Miss Lovegood, is why I am conflicted about this situation." This captured the whole attention of the teens as the man finally began to reveal more.

"I have seen many things improve in my life, and a few weeks ago I still tough that our world was overcoming its differences, marching toward a hard but brilliant future. It might not seems like it, but yes, things are way better than what they used to be when I was your age Miss Lovegood. Sadly, the level of corruption that I encountered this recent days demolished my hopes of a better future for our world. I am then at an conundrum, should I help a world that doesn't seems to evolve from it's past failings, and continue to commit the same mistake over and over, or should I simply ignore it altogether and let all be damned?" He looked at Harry, as if trying to find an answer on his face.

"Yes, our situation is grim Miss Lovegood, but then I remember people like the Weasley family, young witches as Miss Granger, then young boys as Harry and I remember that, not everything in this world of ours is rotten or distorted, they are still good people that just want to live and maybe, make the difference in our world."

Greengrass tired of the speech, asked. "Get to the point Headmaster," she seemed spiteful that again, he had not countered her between those that could make a difference in the world. Dumbledore hearing her nodded and then looked at Harry.

"Harry you asked me why I didn't train you in all this years, it's simple, we didn't have enough time, no please, let me finish first before you retaliate. Do you truly believe that with four or six years of intense training, you would be in the same level that Tom? A Wizard that has at least fifty to sixty years if no more of experience on him? A man that even I with more than a century of experience over magic can't defeat easily?" He looked at each of them, trying to find an answer from them, when he found none he continued.

"Then you should have trained me when I was a little boy, you shouldn't have left me to be raised by the Dursley, you should have..." Dumbledore finally lost his patience after hearing those words.

"Do you know who was in line to claim you into their family? How close I was to lose you into the hands of someone that wanted you badly for his own gains? Their was no one, not a single party that your parents left on their wills that was capable of raising you. The Longbottom's, your Godparent, Peter Pettigrew, all of them were unavailable to take care of you as they put on to their wills, that leaved the Minister to choose the most close relative alive on your line. One that the Ministry found appropriate for someone of your importance, in this case that was your only _Ministry approved living relative at the time_, Narcissa Malfoy Nee Black." Dumbledore looked tired even if he was looking fiercely at the now gaping Harry.

"Yes Harry, you are related to the Malfoys, linked only by the Black blood that runs into your veins thanks to your grandmother Dorea Black, who married your grandfather Charlus Potter. I had to find another way, and sadly the Dursley were by far the most secure location for you, I am aware that I probably condemned you for a harsh and dark childhood on their hands, but what other option did I have? At the time I wasn't the Head of the Wizengamont, that was Bartemius, I can't seal your parents will, I don't control the goblins nor do I have such power to intimidate an entire nation to obey me, much less I am flighty rich to bribe them into making me your magical guardian, I gained that right when you become an student in Hogwarts, and even that have legal limitations. I am only a man Harry, I am not the invincible man that some people paint me to be, I have limits in what I can do politically. I sacrificed a great deal of my money, favours and connections to not let you end on Malfoys hands." Dumbledore was breathing hard and laboured, it wasn't easy to let all that frustration go when he wasn't exactly as young to stand such an effort without breathing properly.

Once he had rested enough he finally said, "I am aware of how much you suffered there Harry, but I was being closely watched, if I suddenly brought you to Hogwarts to live away from your relatives, Malfoy would have pounced into the castle, claiming you immediately once he finds in what conditions you where living, he would have the legal power to do so if they confirmed the atrocious conditions, now you are pretty aware of how loyal is the man to your worst enemy, how much pray you tell would you be yourself, or even alive under the care of Voldemort?"

Silence reigned there, no one willing to break it after such revelation, Hermione finally founding her voice said. "Then why didn't you bewitch them to be better people? You said you were prepared to do what must be done to protect Harry, why would you not change them to treat better Harry?"

Dumbledore looked at her before saying, "I tried my best to erase any trail of Harry directions from the Ministry, so far as he couldn't be traced he was fine. The Blood Wards I placed on the place would ensure that Harry survived any other mean of magical harm or tracing. They charged the protection of Lily too so that gave Harry an advantage if Tom ever returned."

Greengrass asked, "That doesn't not answer why didn't you bewitch them," Everyone looked at Dumbledore before the man deflated on his chair and said, "I never believed them capable of treating a member of their family, their own blood in such fashion. It didn't cross my mind, and I was too desperate to place Harry on their hands that I didn't hear the precaution of those few that knew of his location. After that, I had to ask them a magical oath to never reveal that location to anyone under any circumstances... When I finally began to check on Harry it was too late to do something without alerting the Ministry of your location."

Harry closed his eyes, finally saying, "They began to mistreat me after my fifth birthday, the worst always being Aunt Marge." He didn't say anything more after that.

Ron finally asked, "What will you do to us?" Everyone looked at him for a second before they redirected all their attention to Dumbledore. Who slowly looked each of them in their eyes for a few seconds.

He closed his eyes for a few seconds, trying to recompose himself, before he finally said, "My intentions are to introduce Harry in a ritual that could give him the power he so desperately needs, it was a creation of mine, later put into action by the man who used to be the owner of this house."

Everyone immediately protested, especially Luna, "You can't be serious, you want to submit Harry to a ritual without even considering how it will react to his new condition."

Hermione wasn't that behind of the blonde protest when the voice of Harry suddenly interrupted theirs. "What does this ritual do?"

Dumbledore nodded ignoring again the flabbergasted looks of the teenagers, "It will give you experience, my experience to be precise, knowledge, movements all will become yours, sadly there is a high probability that your mind could be rewritten in the process, and you will cease to be the Harry we knew. Probably becoming an amalgamation of our personalities."

Ron immediately shouted, "YOUR MAD," followed closely by the rest of them.

A loud bang then resounded in the small room, taking away all their shouts with them, Dumbledore was still looking at Harry, "Or you could stay here, and train under my tutelage for years, while the rest of the world burns under the hand of Voldemort and those that will gladly abuse their power. It's your choice Harry."

"So much for doing what's right over what's easy." Daphne openly said, Dumbledore on his part just looked at her and answered.

"And tell me, Miss Greengrass, what road is the easy one?"

The girl immediately answered, "You want to _gift_ him with your knowledge, your powers, you want him to fight your battle, nothing more while you are safe and sound."

The man looked at her for a few seconds before nodding, "Effectively, I do want to gift Harry with my powers and knowledge, however that's were your theory stops being accurate at all, Miss Greengrass. I want Harry to be prepared for the future that's to come, mostly because if my plan goes as it should, I will be unable to help any of you or this world anymore."

Hermione looked at him, "What are you talking about Headmaster?" The man sighed and quickly said.

"I have done horrible things this past two days Miss Granger," He closed his eyes, breathing slowly for a few seconds, apparently reminiscing.

When he opened his eyes and looked at them, he looked empty and crestfallen, as if all of his extravagance and joviality was sucked out of him painfully. He moved the soft fabric of his robe revealing his pale and marked chest.

All the teenagers gasped in surprise and horror, his chest was openly scarred with recent wounds, lines of angry red over pale white skin were visible even from their side, Luna, Hermione and Daphne immediately recognized those marks as Runes, pretty advanced runes that none of them could actually hope to understand with a mere glance and their actual knowledge. Dumbledore then closed his robe, ending the show as quickly as it began and said.

"When I found about the Triad and how low this government has fallen, I decided that there was nothing I could do to save this world from their sins, however, I couldn't leave those that are innocents to suffer under Voldemort reign, so I decided to take a more proactive route on this problem." He looked at Harry and said, "I recruited the help of very proficient Wizards and witches to search two highly important things." He frowned still hating himself over what he had done to get to this point in such a short amount of time.

He closed his eyes, reclining his head against the chair and continued, "I needed to find how many times Voldemort could divide his soul, so I did go to the direction of an old friend with the only intent of finding this crucial clue to the mystery... but when I found him he wasn't cooperative, and in fact gave me a adulterated memory instead. Sadly for him, I do not have anymore time to waste trying to convince him of the importance of my search, so I brought him with me to a secure location and after hours of convincing under the hands of my companions I finally got what I wanted."

Dumbledore then opened his eyes and looked at Harry who was openly surprised at this revelation, "What I found was that Voldemort could divide his soul seven times to reach the result he so desired. Three of those pieces are now destroyed, those being the Dairy, Harry's scar and a Snake, we have two more those being a Locket and a Diadem. My companions are working to find the last one, but to our surprise, we found that Tom may had divided his soul one last time, that being the snake that a friend of mine killed on the spot."

Hermione curiously asked, "How could you find those items so soon? I though that it would be a difficult if not impossible search." The man looked at her and said, "Luck I might guess, especially on the first item, the locket. It was in the possession of a house elf in our headquarters, I suspected that one could be possibly hidden at Hogwarts, one of my companions suggested we ask the elves of the school as they probably knew the castle better than anyone else in this world. I begged for their help to locate dark objects and they were gloriously throughout. Every dark item in the school was brought to a secure room and after hours of search we found what we were looking for. The rest of the dark objects were given to another more appropriate person to deal with them accordingly."

Luna now apparently more composed asked, "Who are these companions you keep mentioning? Why are you hiding them?"

Dumbledore sighed and said, "I took an oath to not reveal all of their identities, but I can attest of their truthfulness, Harry, Miss Granger and Weasley know very well three of them, the others tough are powerful people that are on the right side of this war."

Daphne immediately snorted, "Your side." A Comment that the old man decided to ignore completely.

Harry looking at Dumbledore firmly said, "You mentioned that you have in your possession two more pieces of his soul, but you only mentioned that three are destroyed, why haven't you destroyed the other two?"

The old man looked grim at that question, but after a few seconds he said, "They are needed Harry, the ritual I am talking about needs something powerful to tie Voldemort to my destiny, they will be later anchored to my life, and as soon as the ritual ends I will be forcing Voldemort to come with me to the after life, screaming if necessary."

Luna looked at the man curiously, "You are condemning yourself to suffer all your after life, why?"

The man smiled, looking at Harry, "Because then I would prevent Harry or any of you from fighting the man yourselves." He smiled kindly in the silence that followed that statement, at least until Ron of all people said.

"You are doing this only because you know that Harry might end up being a copy of yourself, don't you?" Greengrass looked at the red headed boy, surprised that he had stolen what she was about to remark to the man. Luna, Hermione and Harry just looked at him for a few seconds before they directed their gazes to the old man.

Dumbledore was silent for a few seconds before he nodded, and said, "Well tough Mister Weasley, well tough. I knew that you had the potential in you."

Everyone exploded instantly, all trying to curse the man at the same time, before Greengrass finally screamed at the teens, "Wake up you idiots, he promised to tell us the truth, not to not hurt us in the process."

Dumbledore nodded before he looked at Harry, then at Luna and finally at Hermione, "I have created three thrones, each of them is imbued with your blood, I devised this plan when they were only three of you, I have seen great potential on you three that can benefit greatly from this process, but as all roads to power there is always a hidden consequence. This time the risk of having your mind completely re-made to fit my own is a high possibility."

Harry angrily shouted, "YOU'RE MAD!"

Dumbledore nodded, before he made a gesture with his hand, causing the chairs of Ron and Daphne to disappear, taking them with them to who knew where. Hermione gasped, understanding the implications of said action. "You wouldn't dare..." her voice was shaking, she actually still couldn't believe how low the man could go to get what he wanted.

The old man on the other hand clarified, "I know about what you are capable at, thanks to that displaying of Miss Lovegood, so I had to think of way to prevent any of you from using those abilities against me. That's why I will held your friends on hold until you three finish the ritual."

Luna looked at the man, and asked, "You made it look at first as if it was a choice we had to make for ourselves, but in the end you were planning for this, aren't you?" The man stood and nodded while looking at the girl, he frowned as a tiny spasm of pain floured his flesh thanks to the injuries on his chest.

Harry spat in the man direction, glaring all the time, "You are no better than Voldemort, both are willing to sacrifice anything, to get what they want in the end."

Dumbledore nodded again, "True, both of us are willing to do anything to get what we want, but that is were the similitude ends. I am not doing this to escape from death, much less to govern over the world, magical or muggle. I am doing this because I am willing to sacrifice a few lives to save thousands. I am even sacrificing my soul to suffer the same fate than that of Voldemort to save the magical world, or at least those innocents that doesn't want anything to do with the Death Eaters, the Triad, or any criminal organization. For you that probably is evil itself, for me I am just trying to do what I can to ensure the survival of the magical world."

Luna looked at the man, then said, "That's why you didn't wanted to reveal the identity of your comrades, they are a safe-ward in case none of us inherit your mind in the ritual."

The old guy looked at the girl, and smiled. "Such potential, yes you are right Miss Lovegood, I doubt that killing Voldemort would reign his followers or the Triad in the process. So I need people that are willing to fight for the light in the dark future that's to come, people that any of you wouldn't just abandon to their own in the incoming battles. So if lady luck didn't bless any of you with my full personality in the process, you still would have great abilities that will be of use to those loved ones."

"You are a bastard, Dumbledore..." Shouted Harry angrily, trying all he could to get free of the chair. The man just denied with his head, he finally moved his hand making the table disappear before them. Revealing in the process the carved surface of the floor with great detail.

Each of the chairs suddenly disappeared leaving them free from their clutches, Harry was ready to pounce upon the old man when Hermione finally said. "Don't Harry, he still held Ron and Greengrass, we don't know what he is capable of if we attack him, and look..." She pointed with her hands at Luna who was on the floor looking scared and lost without her cat. Hermione just simply couldn't ignore the blonde any more and before she knew it, she was at her side trying to hug the girl to no avail.

"I am sorry Hermione, I am so sorry, I know that you might have noticed what I did to you in the forest, but I was so scared, you seemed so possessive, you wouldn't let me have Harry, you would have tried to push us away, and in the process you would have hurt him so much having to choose between the two of us. I did try to just have him that night and let you two be, but once I got Persephone the mere idea was unbearable, I needed a way to conserve Harry without outright killing you, I needed you to accept me, to love me as much as you loved Harry..." The blonde said immediately as soon as she saw the brunette, she was trembling profusely until Hermione finally caressed her face, cleaning the tears that were now openly falling.

"I forgive you, I really do. We need to talk about it later, but right now we need to focus on surviving this ritual with our personalities intact."

Harry tried to get closer to them when Dumbledore voice was once again raised, "We need to use the ritual as soon as possible, I fear that I will not be able to repeat this much longer, not with my injuries in such an state. So If you please seat yourselves in the thrones..."

The black haired boy immediately said, "I will submit to this ritual Dumbledore, but leave the girls out of this, you only want me, don't you?"

Hermione and Luna immediately protested, the brunette taking the lead, "You will not let us out Harry, we are together in this," Hermione looked at Luna who was gazing at her eyes imploringly, Hermione nodded then looked at Harry. "We would never leave you alone again Harry, the headmaster knew that, that's why he made three thrones instead of only one. He knew from the beginning that we would do anything to be alongside you, not mattering the consequences."

The old man spoke, "Effectively Miss Granger I," only to be cut of by an angry snarl from Luna.

"Don't say anything Headmaster, don't soil this moment with your rotten toughs of what love is, we are not doing this for you, or your vision of the greater good. We are only doing this for Harry, and to be alongside him until the end," The blonde looked at Hermione then at Harry and said, "We are one, and nothing you do would even destroy that."

Dumbledore just affirmed with his head, before he signalled which throne was designed for each of them, they slowly sat in each of the stone cold seats, looking how every surface has been carved to fit into a line that was clearly imbued in blood, this line did go all the way from the floor to the where the head was supposed to rest in a tiny tanks full of a green liquid.

Hermione mockingly said, "This look like a brainwashing machine crossed with a chair you would only find in a barbershop Headmaster."

The man just ignored her comments while he took from his pocket a crown made of the same material that those of their crowns and put it on his head, he looked at Luna and immediately said, "Remember that your elf is still attached to his chair, to prevent him from helping you, all my elves are preventing him from make any kind of move. And so he is too a reminder of those friends that are held captive in case any of you, "He looked then at Hermione and lastly at Harry, "tries to do anything when I take away your manacles."

The blonde looked at the floor, understanding the menace of what could happen if any of them tried to attack him while they were finally free. Once he got a nod from each of them, clarifying that they understood. He moved his wand and in a few seconds Luna was free and in her head was resting a similar crown that the old man was using.

"Sit and put your head into the potion tank Miss Lovegood, once you reach that position, the throne will prevent any kind of movement until the ritual is done with."

She looked at Harry, and them Hermione and openly trembling she finally sat and assumed the position, gasping in surprise when her body suddenly was unable to move, her throne immediately began to shine with a red glow, each mark being slowly filled by the green goo of the tank. In the end all the marks were full of the substance and the line that reached the floor extended itself toward the middle of the room, where a huge pool of the green goo seemed to be awaiting for what they supposed was Dumbledore.

The man nodded, seeing that everything was working as it should, then he looked at Harry, and said, "You go second Harry, remember who is held hostage right now, control your temper, think before you act." Harry just spat at the feet of the old man, who decided to ignore the action and immediately freed the boy from his manacles, a movement of his wand and he reshaped them into a crown and put it on the boy, who sat in the throne immediately trying to get over with this. The same process happened to him and the throne.

Then Dumbledore finally looked at Hermione who was openly glaring at him, trying in vain to control the falling tears without much success. Dumbledore walked in her direction, and whispered on her ear, even is she tried to get away from him. "When the time comes, you will be the one that could define how this ritual will end, Miss Granger. Miss Lovegood is too unstable emotionally to be the centre, and Harry never though things thoroughly on his life, he is changing but that isn't enough to survive unscathed this ritual. Choose wisely and help them get over this test of wills, it will be a shame to lose your minds after all." She gasped, and tried to say something when he suddenly freed her and put incredibly fast the crown on her head forcing her in the process to sit in the middle throne, getting a scream and a curse from Harry, who could not hear or see perfectly what he had done to the brunette.

Once Hermione was secure on the throne, the headmaster let his robe fall, revealing only to himself his scarred torso and legs, Harry keep cursing as loud as he could, fighting against Jäger while Luna screamed in fear and a touch of anger as Persephone tried to destroy the magical bindings and the blonde prevented her from doing so.

Hermione could only hear the voice of Renata for a few seconds before the sound of Dumbledore scream reached their ears, the man was clearly in agony as he submerged himself in the green pool at the middle. Few seconds passed when the thrones finally began the process and put the brunette and her lovers into the mind of Dumbledore.

It all began with a loud scream of agony, and after that black claimed their visions.

**XxX**

**H**ermione saw herself living each excruciating moment of the life of Albus Dumbledore, she felt the love of her mother, Kendra and her father Percival, and that of her brothers, it was at first a hard but happy life while they lived in Mould-of-the-wold. At least until disgrace touched their doors and Ariana was hurt by those Muggle boys.

From that point onwards, her life seemed to be a constant descend. Her beloved father was sentenced to Azkaban for "Muggle Hunting", mostly because he sought revenge against the boys who dared to inflict such damage upon his daughter. That leaved her sister incapable in many ways, but most importantly she couldn't control anymore her magic, so to protect her he never revealed what caused him to do what he did.

It took them a year before they moved to Godric's Hollow, where they were slowly isolated by their mother from contacting anyone outside the house, it was then that she began to hate her own sister, as she seemed to be the one that was slowly erasing her freedom. Mother only seemed to trust if barely on Bathilda Bagshot. Soon she had to learn to not mention in any form the name of her sister and her father in public, and before she knew it she began to believe them to be disgraces.

Her first year at Hogwarts wasn't easy, everyone talked at her back, calling her names openly, others sought her to join their cause, openly believing her to be another muggle hater, the daughter of a Muggle hater. So she put her mind to be the best Witch that Hogwarts ever had.

Her only true friend was Elphias Doge, a boy who was suffering Dragon Pox, and as years continued, she gained more friends alongside many discoveries and prices to her name. She was held as a prodigy, she was believed to be the second coming of Morgana, and before she knew it she was believing them.

Then tragedy struck again, and all her plans to travel the world with Elphias were ruined again by Ariana. She simply had been chained to her wayward brother and her useless little sister. She simply was condemned to be hold back thanks to them. She then truly began to think of them as liabilities and closely began to hate Ariana, as she had taken away both of her parents.

So she began to think of a way to "cure" her damaged sister, it took her not that long, and she had a concrete idea on her mind. If she was successful she could be finally free of them.

Then he came, he was searching clues for a fairy tail, and at first she didn't take him seriously too focused on her little experiment, but as she got to know him, she discovered a great mind, his ideas where well tough, he was charismatic, he was handsome, he was the man she wanted to be the rest of her life.

They began to talk about his ideas, and before she knew it, she was sharing with him ways to ensure his vision of the world come to be true, and what she had been working at, on her free time to cure her sister. That's how they created the ritual of assimilation, a ritual that would ensure that the receiver was re-educated to fit their ideals. Why kill or put in a cell one of your citizens if you could simply re-educate him to fit the greater good accordingly?

But as time passed, her brother got tired of how much she was ignoring her little sister, at first she ignored him. Ariana was a woman now, she could take care of herself, and ordered him to continue his studies at Hogwarts. But that was hardly the last fight about the matter and she knew it.

Sadly as time passed by Gellert become more distant and desperate, he simply forgot about the ritual of assimilation and began to search again for the Hallows. His last visit to prompt her to go with him in search of the Hallows ended up when Aberforth began to angrily shout at her about Ariana, Gellert for all the love she had for him did the unforgivable and cursed her brother with the Cruciatus curse.

She fought with all her might, trying to contain more than to kill, in the end, the mess ended up with the death of her sister by a stray curse. Gellert fled like a coward, and only she and Aberforth stood there with the body of Ariana looking at them emptily.

Later in the burial she finally understood what she had become thanks to her feelings for Gellert, how selfish she had been, how stupidly she had closed her eyes, pretending to ignore what the man was, even when it was glaringly obvious from the first day.

She didn't blame of presented charges against her brother when he literally punched her in the face, she used all her power to leave him free of any charge of assault, she tough that she deserved that and more, so she like Gellert, fled to the only place that seemed to be her true home, Hogwarts. For years she pretended to be a normal but gifted teacher at the school, ignoring the whisperings of war and destruction that were slowly invading the sanctity of the castle. She tried to convince herself that it was again a war caused by Muggles, it wasn't the first time that a muggles battle dragged the magical world to fight too. But she knew, deep inside of her that the one behind all this was none other that Gellert, and that she had been evading him just by mere fear of finding who was the caster of the curse that ended in Ariana's death.

In the end she couldn't ignore the treat anymore, not when it was confirmed that many Wizards and Witches were being brainwashed to fight in Gellert's name. She couldn't let more people suffer and die thanks to her actions, so she began to lead and fight against Gellert and his forces with the best of her abilities.

It wasn't an easy task, at first she just lead from afar while many soldiers fought in the name of freedom, but as Gellert began to use his magical troops to wipe entire cities, she had been forced to the front, fighting and saving as much people as she could. She lost count of how many nights she spend awake, trying to run away from the nightmares of what she had found in battle.

Trying in vain to forget the smell of rotten bodies and burning flesh, trying to forget about destroyed towns that were full of screams of the victims now turned ghost. Of little children crying desperately for their parents to stand up, and of friends dyeing besides her. She tried to forget everything but it wasn't enough, not when she knew that she will find the same thing on the next town that Gellert or that imbecile of Hitler, decided was unnecessary on their vision of a perfect world.

Then after years of constant battle, she had found and fought against the man that she once tough would be her husband. He was as always, formidable, fire, water, stone, wind, everything was a weapon in their duel, Transfiguration, charms, jinxes where launched and countered. Every move, every breath and every power in that battle was enough to kill the other if they committed the most tiny of mistakes.

Then in the end, Gellert fell under her power, unable to fight back, she took claim of the Elder Wand, and then let others take care of the man. Knowing that she couldn't say or do something to save him from what he rightfully deserved.

She re-designed an old project of theirs to hold back his magic for she knew that if he could, he would set himself free and do more damage to this already damaged world. He was held ironically prisoner in the place he had created to hold his enemies, collared and manacled to restrain any kind of use from his magical powers.

After that she returned to Hogwarts to...

"_I think this is as far as you should go, Miss Granger!_"

Hermione suddenly was separated from the reality that she so had believed was her own, she was trembling and murmuring, conflicted about what was real and not.

"_Focus Hermione, Focus, you need to resort your memories, remember who you are and what you are doing here. I can't lose you too, Hermione you should control yourself. Remember who you are, Hermione Jane Granger." _

Hermione looked at the figure in front of her, she was surprised to find a young version of what could be Dumbledore, she was in fact only capable or recognize him thanks to his nose and his eyes, he seemed to be imposing and self assured, he exuded power from every pour of his body. She was actually frightened of him and what he could do.

"_Good, you have resorted your memories of yourself over my own, good, you are indeed a outstanding witch Miss Granger, however, there is a last step to be done if you want to get free of this predicament." _

The brunette slowly was on her feet's, shaking slightly and trying in vain to not tremble in front of the imposing man.

"What do you truly want Dumbledore? I was being perfectly assimilated to be a female version of yourself, why prevent it?"

The man smiled at her and said, "_That's indeed the crux of the matter isn't it? Why bother to leave a way to save yourselves from a ritual that could simply re-write your minds?" _

Hermione finally understood, "You don't want us to be like you, you want us to learn from your mistakes, to see the world from your life point, see how much and how little has changed. You want us to be the opposite of you." The man clapped at her words, truly proud of her mind.

"_What a wonderful mind, it would have been a shame to lost it in this ritual don't we? You now are aware of everything that make me what I am, but more important, you are the only one that was capable of surviving this test unscathed." _

She looked at him trying to contain her ire, "They are being assimilated aren't they?" She was openly trembling, so many memories were clashing on her head, many of them not a product of her own life experience but that of Dumbledore.

The man nodded and said, "_Miss Lovegood is completely lost to us right now, she was the most unstable of the trio. Her mind was fractured in many ways, even before this ritual started. Her new condition seemed to be slowly repairing her, but that was slowly changing her into something she wasn't." _

"You spied on us?" She accused, he nodded.

"_Dobby was of great help, I regret what he had done to himself, but I needed to know what you had become thanks to this new power. And while we talked a few hours ago, I could read your minds, finding what I needed to find, prove that I wasn't just thinking too hard on the matter." _

"How could I save her? And what of Harry?" She wasn't trusting the man, not after so many manipulations, but she hasn't any other choice.

Dumbledore nodded and began to walk into the horizon, he motioned with his had to follow him. As she did even if a little wary he began to talk again. "_Your species have two entities living under the same body, Miss Granger. A formidable treat, but one actually dangerous you see. I believe all of you are probably aware that only the domineering entity will gain control over the body."_

He looked at her, expecting a response, she nodded, she hasn't anything better to do. He then began to talk again, "_When Miss Lovegood was stupefied and still rose to attack me, I knew that this new personality could help me prevent a complete assimilation. You see, it was only this event that truly __redefined my actions. At least in what I should do about you. I truly tough at first of just erasing all your minds and re-write them for the greater good. But the discovery of your ability to absorb magic to refill your own or cure yourselves changed everything. I know myself pretty well Miss Granger, I know how easy it was for me to forget my ideals, how weak I was with the power I held. I knew that if I re-made your minds to be my own, that I would condemn the world to the rising of not one, but three Dark lords." _

Hermione finally stopped and looked at him, ignoring how he seemed to be now glowing in power and magic, behind him a orb of electricity was shining almost as brightly as him, if not much more.

He closed his eyes and said, "_It's is time for you to take a decision Miss Granger, In front of you are three paths, one its with me, you could merge with myself and be re-done. A new you would be born to the world, more powerful, more wise, and much more. The other road its the one that this creature is offering you. Without my tampering, any evidence of this ritual would be erased from __your mind and you would save yourself, but leave your lovers behind in the process." _

She looked at him, already knowing which road she would not take, finally she asked, "And the third one is?"

The man smiled, and opened your eyes, "_You could finally claim complete control over the creature, and fight alongside her to defeat me and seal my memories away on your mind. Where you could use them without my personality affecting yours. Be aware, they will be always the risk of my old personality wanting to take control of yourself, as much as the cat has been waiting for a chance to claim control of your body__."_

Hermione smiled, knowing where this was coming, "But if I control the cat, your personality would never stand a chance to control my body, it will be always held by the cat powers, and with time..."

Dumbledore completed her sentence, "_With time I will simply disappear in the confines of your mind, as you control and make your own my knowledge and abilities." _

The girl nodded then asked again, "How could I help my lovers? How could I help Harry and Luna from being completely assimilated?" The young Dumbledore looked at the orb of electricity.

"_You three have created a bond that's unbreakable in any form I know of, use this bond to reach to them and save them as I have done to you, I am sadly too tired to truly be of any help, much less I __doubt they will trust in me and what I say." _

"You can't blame them for that, you might be giving us knowledge and power Dumbledore, but you forced us to in many ways, that I am not completely sure if any of us could actually forgive you."

Dumbledore simply smiled sadly at her,_ "I assure you Miss Granger, that I will pay for my sins and what I have done to you." _

That being said, Hermione finally walked in the direction of the orb and with all the confidence she could gather, she trusted her hand upon the sphere, finally hearing the desperate voice of Renata.

It took her moments, to get closer to the cat and explain the situation, at first the feline wasn't happy, but she was another expression of her personality, and knew that she wanted to save the others as much as herself. "I promise you that you only will be holding Dumbledore back until all of us assimilate his knowledge and abilities, once he disappear you will be free again to roam the world and complete your mission."

Renata looked at her for a few seconds and mewled happily before she was completely absorbed into the body of the brunette. Hermione slowly changed into her half beast form, looking at her claws closely before she slowly began to will herself to be human. It took her some time, probably hours, she wasn't so sure how much time has passed on this place that Dumbledore brought her upon. But in the end she controlled every aspect of her cat. She was Renata and Hermione.

Finally she looked in the direction of the young Dumbledore, who was openly applauding her conquest over the cat, he looked at her firmly at the eyes and nodded. Letting her rudely thrown her hands at his chest and absorb every fibre of his magical being. She tried not to, but she was clearly sobbing while she absorbed the image of the young man.

"I am so sorry," she said, not truly understanding why she felt so bad while doing this, she openly hated the man, but it wasn't easy for her to forget so many years of admiration, much less when she could understand now better what moved the man that used to be Dumbledore.

"_Don't be, everything haves a cycle Hermione, I have finally reached the end of my own, I am glad that I could be of use to you, and Harry. Take care of him and little Luna." _And with that the figure simple disappeared as she finally absorbed him and sealed him on the back of her mind with the help of Renata.

Then the world that she was brought in by Dumbledore collapse throwing her right in the middle of what seemed to be a crossroad of light. She instinctively recognized the bond that she and her loved shared. It was slowly disappearing and she couldn't permit that. She jumped in the direction of the more debilitated bond, that ended up being the mind of Luna.

It took her a moment to recompose herself, especially when she was again living the life of Albus Dumbledore, this time, while he was apparently recruiting a boy with formidable powers in a dilapidated room. She frowned when she heard the name of said boy, she didn't have enough time to see what a little monster the boy already was. When she plunged herself into the memories and tried to extract Luna into an similar scenario.

Sadly Luna seemed to oppose her, and they had to struggle for a while, she even had to use her full power to separate the avatar of Dumbledore from the tiny body of Luna, who was openly crying and screaming in desperation.

"I am sorry my dear, I needed to separate you two, the process was almost done, you were simply too broken to oppose resistance." She held the girl on her arms, comforting her as much as she could, she was rocking slowly trying to serenade the now wailing girl. The image of the young Dumbledore just watched, completely unmovable a few feet's away from her.

Luna finally said, "I am so sorry, I AM SORRY, it was just too tempting to not to let it take control of me, I had a mother and a father and a whole family. I wanted to have that again but then everything began to get worst, and nothing seemed to change for the better." Hermione nodded, the life of the man hasn't been perfect it was in fact far away from it.

She finally kissed her slowly on the forehead then said, "I know, I lived his life too, it wasn't pleasant, but I could defeat his young self. I need you to hear me Luna, please, look at me."

The blonde finally gazed the brunette directly at her eyes, hoping to find forgiveness rather than hate for what she had done to the girl. Thankfully for her, only love was held in the brunette eyes. "I might resent a little what you did to me that night, but that move actually opened my own eyes in many ways that I couldn't explain. You broke trough my façade, one that I carefully build around myself for years, you made me aware of my mistakes, and what route I was taking and more grateful I could not be. You helped me find myself Luna, a version of me that I am comfortable with and in fact quite proud of."

She slowly approached the blonde lips and smugly said, "If this didn't happen, I would still be chasing Ron, believing that I could change him for the better, I would have ended up being a nightmare, and in the long run we would have grown apart from the other, or to sustain a relationship that we were both unhappy with just to not destroy our deluded ideas of what a home is. Yes, I am domineering, I can't evade it, it's part of me, and I really would have excluded you with all my being if you didn't take charge." She caressed the now blushing blonde as she still teased her lips with her middle finger. "But you know what I finally discovered when I was able to think things trough? That I liked what you did to me, what you made me become. You and Harry had become my all even if I am a little hurt by your actions, we are all now equals, not Alpha or Omega, just lovers. And even of we follow that patter, we are now Alpha, Beta and Gamma."

She finally kissed the girl with as much love as she could, once she transmitted what she wanted, she pushed back softly and looked at the blonde. "Gamma, not Omega,"

Luna smiled finally getting more control of her body, "I agree, you are a wonderful Gamma Hermione, I know that this is too soon, but I love you, I love you both with all my heart, never leave me alone again please." She finally tried to get on to her feet's with the help of the brunette, and once she reached an standing position, she finally noticed the figure of an old Dumbledore, exactly the figure of the man that had recruited Tom Riddle.

Luna looked at the orb of energy, understanding immediately what she needed to do thanks to what Hermione transmitted with her kiss. It took her a time to control Persephone, especially because the cat hated the idea of being confined for who knew how much time until she absorbed the Knowledge of Dumbledore and the man finally disappeared. It only took a mention of Jäger and Harry and in how much danger they were to fully convince the cat to let her be the one in charge. After that she just took her time to control her new self, and without a word between her and Dumbledore absorbed the man as quickly as she could.

Once the old man disappeared they were launched again into the crossroad, only that this time remained two directions, they ignored the road in the middle knowing that it would take them to Dumbledore mind and rushed in the direction of Harry.

When they entered this cycle, they found that Harry was about to end the assimilation as he was discussing with themselves. They knew that they had not much time thanks that they were still talking about the triad and Greengrass sister.

It took both to take Harry away from the memory, and all of their power to separate him from the image of Dumbledore. He was breathing hard and seemed to be lost to the world for a few seconds, especially as it took them a while to recover themselves from the effort. They were about to talk with him when the orb that was supposed to be Jäger suddenly took form, exuding power and anger not only toward the now still image of Dumbledore, but at them too.

"What have you done to my cats? What have you done to Persephone and Renata?" He seemed to be pondering if he should pound upon them or not. When Luna decided to take charge of the situation. "We have taken complete control over the body, they agreed to let us... " She immediately transformed into her half form when the huge Lion suddenly pounced upon her trying to stop her or maul her.

"Don't Lie to me little girl, I can sense them there, they are sealed, what did you do to cause this blasphemy, did you surrendered to the promise of the old guy? TELL ME." He was about to lash his claws upon the face of Luna when Hermione impacted at his side, angrily biting as much as she could.

"You dumb feline, you are about to kill Harry."

"That's what only matter to you people, your own, tell the truth you sacrificed your cats to save yourselves." Jäger tried to take off of him the half beast when Luna pounced in front of him with all her power. Biting at his neck and trying to suffocate him, at least enough to make him lose conscience.

Harry seeing what the girls were doing tried to get on to his feet's but he was still too weak after whatever they had done to him when he was one with Dumbledore.

Jäger in a fit of anger clawed the form of Luna out of him, gaining a screech of pain from the girl when she was suddenly separated from him. Hermione angry at what he has done began to drain him of his energy, a movement that was awfully Taboo between the cats.

Jäger roared as it tried to take off of him the silhouette of Hermione, who held him as much as her arms and claws could led her. Luna on her part finally recovered herself and slowly crawled in the direction of Harry with the only intent of passing the information into the tired boy, once she reached him he tried to struggle and force himself to help her, but he was actually more tired than what she had anticipated.

"Luna, what's going on?" He immediately was shut when she forcedly kissed him and began to gave him as much knowledge as she could. Once she reached a limit with her forces, she stopped, breathing as hard as she could to recompose himself.

"Luna are you OK?" He knew that that was an stupid question, but he couldn't stop himself she just smiled tiredly and said. "Jäger is just showing how much of the old you he haves, he pounced before he tough, I couldn't blame him, he thinks that we have sacrificed the girls to save ourselves. You need to claim complete control of your body Harry, and force him to guard you from Dumbledore personality. Once concluded that..."

Harry ended up her words, "He will be as free ever, and so will be the girls too. I just need to overpower him. Not an easy feat."

Wait a minute, they're fighting in their minds. Why do the usual rules of engagement, the power latching, changing shape, still apply?

Luna smiled before she finally told him, "You have always been our hope Harry, you have so much potential but you lacked the will. We love you Harry, but this is the time to take charge of your life once and for all. I know you can do it."

Harry smiled before he kissed her on the lips for a few seconds, he quickly began to run in the direction of the struggling couple Hermione saw him and smiled only to be finally thrown aside from the struggling Lion. Harry snarled and pounced upon the raging animal, who looked surprised at his attack, Harry's body impacted on to Jäger ans was fully absorbed in the process, making the beast cringe in pain then in fury as Harry began to slowly take away his power and control.

Jäger struggled and for a while he seemed to be regaining his force, just to be painfully reminded that Hermione and Luna where still out there when they showed him in a bath of lightnings. He frowned in pain and ire, then suddenly calmed himself when he could finally recognize the essence of his girls, more controlled he finally could heard what Harry has been trying to explain, to show him thanks to the information that Luna gave him, Jäger growled in annoyance and anger, this wasn't supposed to be like this he was born to be free not a jailer.

Resigned he let the boy finally consume him entirely knowing that hasn't any other option if he wanted to live to see the girls again. Much less he wanted to leave HIS girls with that lowlife of a Tiger. It was just the mere idea of that what caused him to finally admit defeat to Harry. But then, he had to admit that the boy was the stronger of the two, so taking entire control over the body wasn't all that bad.

Once the boy finally controlled his powers and new body he looked in the direction of Hermione and Luna seeing that they were looking at him, both slightly winded but thankfully nothing more, then he looked at the figure of Dumbledore and frowned. He was divided, he know knew why the man had done what he did, but that didn't meant that he actually could forgive him for it.

Dumbledore on his part just looked at him and said, "_Do what you must, time is not on your side here._" Harry nodded and immediately pounced upon Dumbledore absorbing the image in the most violent way he could imagine just to vent some of his frustration. Once he finished, the world they were in finally broke and they were claimed by darkness again.

When Harry finally woke up again, Hermione was trying to save a now drowning Dumbledore in the middle of the ritual room. Luna was smiling at his side but her smile didn't cover her face as it should be doing, "We need to save the headmaster Harry, I know that you might not..." He immediately stood and walked in the direction of Hermione and the old goat while saying, "I know Luna, I know, I saw what he did to himself and what are his plans, especially why he did this. I might hate him for it, but he is right, we weren't prepared to face a war full head. It was foolish of us to think that by just studying hard we would defeat Voldemort and his circle."

He jumped into the pool of green goo and helped Hermione get the man out of the mess he had put himself into. Harry looked in every direction finding a bunch of elves barely containing an enraged Dobby on a chair. He looked at them and said firmly, "Let him go and come for your master, he need your help you ungrateful beings." As soon as he said that a bunch of elves appeared beside him taking the body of Dumbledore of his hands and quickly taking him away to a probably more secure location.

Then Harry found that Pen the badly scarred elf was looking at him at his side was a bawling Dobby who was continuously asking forgiveness for not helping them as he wanted. Luna and Hermione hugged the little creature while Harry just looked in the direction of Pendlenton.

"I am in charge now, Pendlenton, I need you to free my friends and help us get acquainted with this place. When Dumbledore finally wake's up from wherever your comrades took him, you will tell me as I need to talk to him. But now we need new clothes and food, but first just free my friends. Could you understand that?" The Elf nodded and without a sound disappeared into the air, soon the front door was opened violently by Ron who was shouting their names in fright. He was still manacled and so was Greengrass.

Harry frowned then asked Dobby if he could take the manacles away from his friends, when the elf deflated against the leg of Luna and said. "Only Headmaster can takes those away, Mister Harry Potter Sir."

Everyone signed in frustration, at least the manacles leaved some freedom to eat and take care of other more embarrassing business like personal hygiene on the bathrooms.

Greengrass a little more composed than Ron, finally asked, "What's with the crowns Potter?"

He looked at his girls, and they looked at him and sighed in annoyance, "It's time to reveal you guys what this was all about, so let's talk it while we eat something, we are actually famished after such an experience."

Hermione and Luna nodded in unison, while Ron and Daphne looked at them warily, "Scary, you are doing almost everything at the same time." Daphne nodded, and Harry looked at them, "its an after effect of the crowns, we have to use this things for at least five to six years."

Luna then looked at Ron continuing the conversation, "We are one as long as we use this crown on our heads Ron, we need to be to control what Dumbledore _gifted us _with." Hermione just concluded, "Its not permanent Ron, just think of it as if we suddenly are a second coming of your brothers."

"BLODDY HELL, NO, PLEASE NO."

**To be concluded. **


	15. Chapter 15

"**A**nd if I heard well, only Dumbledore know how to take those manacles away, right?" Asked Ron, trying to assimilate the tale that his friends had related to him a few minutes ago. He was uncomfortable with the silence that permeated the room after they reached the end, so he actually tried to break it away with something that was actually bothersome for him.

Harry nodded, he doubted that Dobby would lie to him after all of that, "I believe that he will unleash you when he recovers from the backlash of the ritual." He has his doubts, but then, Dumbledore wasn't exactly in the right spot to deny them anything. Greengrass on the other hand immediately added.

"And why pry you tell will he obey you, Potter? If you hasn't noticed it, he is a resourceful man, he might be weak at the moment, but he is still a dangerous man. We are still trapped inside this castle, and if your memories are to be trusted at all, the world out there will not be all that welcoming, especially to this particular group. Like it or not we are still under his power, cornered into a position that makes him more valuable to us, than us to him."

Hermione nodded, caressing the hair of a resting Luna who had her head on her lap. "That's certainly true, but I don't think that he will try to trick us anymore, he wouldn't have done all of what he did to prevent us being assimilated if he wanted anything else."

Greengrass snorted, "You certainly are a fool, Granger."

"Watch your mouth", ordered Harry, looking at the Slytherin girl with narrowed eyes. Said girl immediately looked at his direction her eyes defiant and fiery, "And why would I do that, Potter?"

Harry looked at her firmly, "Because I know that you're a smart girl Greengrass, I know that you're aware that we are your last chance here, like it or not, you died the moment Malfoy took you to the forest, at least you are death to the magical world, the fact that the Goblins also support this belief it's the final nail to the coffin. You are stuck with us, so stop antagonizing us because then you will find yourself completely alone in a world that will definitely not like you back."

Daphne looked at him frostily, "So this is how it is? It seems that I exchanged a master for another, tell me Potter, will you force me to be with you as your friends there?" She looked at the girls obviously disapproving of what she was seeing, only to be interrupted by Ron, "NO!" he screamed and looked angrily at Harry then at Daphne apparently confused as to why he had reacted in such a way.

Luna finally spoke even when she hasn't taken her head from the lap of Hermione, "We are not interested in you Greengrass, at least not in that way. You might dislike it, but you have bonded with Ronald and he has done the same with you, is pretty obvious to us that you are fighting against it," She finally opened her eyes and looked in her direction. "That you are denying a part of yourself to him because you are afraid."

Daphne snapped, "So I should just accept it? He took me against my will, he changed me into... this, without my consent I might add again, and I should just accept it Lovegood?"

She looked at Ron crossly, divided between loath and understanding, "You think I don't understand what happened? You think I am not grateful that he saved me from those brutes? Yes I am! but what happened wasn't meant to be, at least not in that fashion. Your irresponsibility it's at fault here, nothing of this would have happened if you kept your hormones in control."

Harry looked at her and said, "What happened, happened, if you are going moan and cry over it then so be it. But that doesn't mean that you have to be a nightmare all the time, yes, I messed up, I am pretty aware that all of this is my fault here, but I am trying to move on with what I have. Tell me, you constantly remind us that this wasn't what you liked. But then, what do you prefer, what other option did your so called family left you with? Even if you hasn't approached Ron, to let me remind you, _get close to me_, nothing of this would have happened. And then you would have been who know where, being in a position much worst than this one."

Hermione added, "You constantly belittle us about what happened to you, forgetting that this is the lesser of your problems, with us you have at least a chance to live as freely as you want, and doing what you choose. You only need to understand that we are in charge here, not you." She looked at Ron who was then looking at her. "And certainly, not you Ron. I know that we still have a lot of issues between us, but that's in the past. We aren't entirely human anymore, we are alone in the entire world now, so we need to be united or we will certainly perish, it's not a choice."

Ron immediately sat, trying to hide his defeated face from them, "Then what will happen with us? I am sure my family thinks I am death right now, how will we survive without help? We don't have money, and if you remember well, the goblins think that Greengrass is death, what is stopping then to believe the same thing with myself and yourselves?"

Luna sighed, then finally moved from the lap of the now trembling Hermione, "He's right, my father, Hermione's parents, and Harry's relatives should have been notified that we are death."

Harry frowned, then said, "I don't think so, I was able to change you two before school began, I assume that we are still registered in the bank. If not, then we would have been approached. After all Luna's father should have been notified and he would have tried to contact her, so would Hermione's parents. I doubt about my relatives, but, I don't believe that we are erased from the banks books."

Ron looked at him, and asked, "then what- only to be interrupted by Greengrass.

"So it seems that I was already sold and out of the Greengrass family tree, maybe my father suspected that I would try to escape if I had access to the family account. The only thing that remained was the chastity charm over my body tied to an object to prove that I was still pure. So when he finally gave me to the Li family the end of this year, nothing would attach me to him." She looked at the floor, frowning all the time, then she raised her head, her eyes downcast and empty, "I need to be alone, please do not bother me for a while."

Ron tried to say something but couldn't say anything and just looked while she disappeared in the darkness of the hallways that leaded to their rooms. He looked at Harry pleadingly, trying to find something to say but he couldn't.

Luna on the other hand immediately called, "Dobby, please if you hear me, watch over Daphne, and stun her if she tries to take her life." An almost silent 'pop' was heard and they all knew that the elf had heard them. Ron finally asked, "What will happen to us guys, I, I don't know what to do."

Harry finally raised himself from his seat and said, "We need to prepare ourselves, that's the only thing we can actually do. But first we need to find a way to communicate with the others, we are trapped here until Dumbledore wake's from his magical coma."

Luna asked, "And after that?"

Harry looked at her, not truly knowing what to do, "I don't know." He couldn't say something else, he truly didn't knew what to do.

**XxX**

"**I** am sorry but, can you repeat that?" Asked Fred while he looked with something close to astonishment as to what his little sister has brought to him. George on the other hand was still gaping at the pages of the book that he reverently held on his shaking hands.

Ginny frowning at the behavior of her brothers repeated, "We need your help in the ritual to become an Animagus."

"Yes I heard you the first time Ginny, I am just not sure of what you are trying to accomplish with this," Fred said, actually doubting her intentions, she looked at him for a few seconds, trying to reconcile with how much her brothers had changed the past six days after the disappearance of Ron. Not that she was perfectly well, but she has noticed that George has slowly becoming a recluse while Fred on the other hand was much more vocal and aggressive than he used to be.

She on the other hand was tired of crying, not when she was sure that Harry would not break his promise, much less this one. Thankfully Neville was to her surprise of great help in this regard as he has been at her side as a fateful friend, never putting his obvious attraction toward her before his need to help. That and the Longbottom heir has surprised her when he approached his grandmother on what kind of information he needed and for what. She wasn't still aware of what happened between the two, but the way Neville approached his grandmother actually gave him results, much better results that she had hoped.

It seemed that whatever he had told the woman, she had dignified his request with a priceless book on rituals, an old tome that was obviously banned by the ministry thanks to many of the rituals and procedures that it contained, many of them were clearly dangerous and required a meticulous and experienced hand. But most of all, this book was banned because all the rituals there needed human blood.

Neville who was looking at the book on the shaking hands of George said, "There is a ritual that almost guaranties an Animagus form, but it needs a lot of power and knowledge that we don't have, it's needs an offering, in this case the part of an animal to help..." He was immediately interrupted by George.

"I don't approve of this Ginny, the risk is too high. It's insane to even try it, even the books says so, 'the risk of getting cursed with this ritual are high indeed, proceed carefully.' This, this is too dangerous."

Ginny huffed, "This could save our lives in the future, you know better than I that only if you mess this badly you get cursed. If we are careful nothing bad will happen."

Fred snapped, "Aren't you listening to us? This is a highly banned book Ginevra, this is heralded as Dark Magic by the ministry, hell if we are trapped with this, it's an instant ticket to Azkaban without protest. How could you think of something so irresponsible when..."

"When what Fred, our father is already fired from the ministry thanks to Malfoy, this might be the last generation of the Weasley family coming to Hogwarts because we can't pay anymore for an education. And even if we had the money to do so, Malfoy is still doing what he can to control the school AND the ministry. Do you think that that last convoy from the board of governors was just here to visit by? WAKE UP, even father saw what is happening, this is the last chance we have to prepare ourselves before the new Minister decides to clear the castle and magical world from what he heralds as vermin. WE are on that list, we are targets, it's just a matter of time before they come for us."

"Ginny is right boys, even my grandmother is aware that the power struggle will end favoring Malfoy, he is scheduled to become Minister in five days, and she is aware that the board of governors is now too under his control. If we don't prepare ourselves now, then, we might not have anymore chances tomorrow. That's why she risked herself by sending me this highly forbidden book, we are being left with very few chances to truly prepare ourselves."

Fred looked conflicted and George again was silent, Ginny decided to put an end to this, "Harry told us that Voldemort is back, do you think of him as a liar too? I know that you are angry with him, and I understand, I am disappointed in what he did to my brother, but he promised us to bring him back, and I have faith that he will do so, he has never broken a promise to his friends, but think clearly, Ron might come back, but do you think that the Ministry will not try to take him away when they find that he is not human anymore? Will we left him alone and to be treated like an animal? I, I don't want to be like him, but I don't want him feeling excluded from our family." She sniffed, trying to control her treacherous eyes.

"I want him to know that he isn't that different, that I too could be an animal when I want. And that I can be with him no matter what... I." She stopped abruptly when a hand touched her shoulder, she looked at Fred with surprise seeing that he too barely was controlling himself.

"I will help you, but only if you let me, - He was immediately interrupted by George, "Us, only if you left us go first, if anything goes wrong, then we want to protect you at least."

Fred looked at his brother, they had been distant this last days, mostly thanks to how different their opinions where of who's fault was. Fred blamed all on Harry while George believed that they weren't free of guilt either as they hasn't been very good brothers to begin with.

This agreement for the first time in days, seemed to be slowly closing the distance between the two. Fred looked at George and silently held his gaze for a few seconds before he said. "How much time we have?"

George immediately looked at the book and said, "We have three days before we miss the full moon, but most than anything we need a lot of money for this, some ingredients are awfully expensive. And some of them are banned, it will not be easy."

Neville interrupted him, "My Grandmother gave me a sack with Galleons too, she too send me the plants that are needed in the ritual, The thing is, they are part of a potion, and I am not good at potions, and even if Ginny seems to be quickly becoming an outstanding witch, she hasn't the experience to prepare it either. This is beyond our abilities, the animal parts can be bought in the alley, but the blood is..."

Ginny sighed and said, "It needs the blood of a virgin maiden to fuel the first part of the ritual, at least to prepare the ground and infuse the marks with magic."

George finally said, "I am not comfortable with this, but as you have said, we don't have anymore chances, and we can't find that ingredient on the alley without getting trapped or scammed. But here says that then each of us should mark ourselves with said blood Ginny, the marks should be precise and we can't commit a mistake or it will cost us our lives, magic or end up cursing us."

Fred looked at Ginny, knowing that when she frowned like that and wasn't looking at him that she was hiding something. He looked at Neville who was fidgeting at this point, something that he hasn't been doing in a while.

"What are you hiding from us?"

Ginny hissed in annoyance before she said, "We have a plan, but, we need you guys to prevent anyone else from finding about this." She looked at Neville, she wasn't entirely sure if this would work or not, but she was risking her freedom to do what she thought was right.

"Neville's grandmother offered to help us, as she knows a great deal in Runes and Arithmancy, sadly she isn't all that good in potions either, at least not enough for this to work properly. But to do so, we need to be in her house and not in the school."

Fred looked at the sweating Neville while he asked, "And how do you propose we do that?" He had a bad feeling about this, especially because he was beginning to suspect what they were talking about.

Ginny finally said, "She proposed a reunion to discuss a marriage contract between myself and Neville, of course it's only and excuse to do the ritual, but we need someone to chaperons us or a legal adult, we can't take this to my parents, not when mum and dad believes that Ron is death and don't know what to do, now that dad is without a job to sustain us. This is where you can be of use."

Neville stammered a little but he finally said, "It's not an formal reunion, we can convince the Headmistress McGonagall that my Grandmother only wants to measure Ginny, and that we only need a day for us to do so." George immediately interrupted and said. "We can't".

Ginny tried to protest only to be silenced by Fred, "It's a good idea, but we actually can't do it, we could do it but think carefully, we are legally adults, but you aren't Ginny, to take you away from the castle we need to be your legal guardians, and we aren't, McGonagall will need then the permission of father and mother, and if she do so and they finds about why, they will need to ask what is happening and then well..."

Ginny mournfully said, "Then we can't do it? We took such a risk for nothing?"

Neville then firmly said, "Then we might need to escape the castle then, you guys seems to know how to do it, we just need to notify Grandmother and she could wait for us in the Alley, then take us to the Longbottom manor, do the ritual and then comeback as soon as we can."

Fred, George and Ginny looked at him for a few moments. Ginny for her part said, "It will be risky Neville, your family can end up shamed if we are caught."

Neville quickly denied, "Shame would be to do nothing while my friends needs help."

Fred frowned and said, "We need then to do this quickly, we can't be away for too long or someone will notify McGonagall, then she at the Aurors and then, at our family."

George finally said, "I don't think that this is a bad idea, think about it, McGonagall is already awfully busy nowadays, we can use the disappearance of Ron and the others to justify ourselves. If someone ask, then we might just say that we were just hiding from the public stares and well, actually use what we have been doing lately." He looked at Fred who nodded in understanding, they had been trying to get away from the stares and the pity that others where sending their way in the school.

Fred sighed and finally looked at his little sister. "All right then, but we need to plan this accordingly, listen, and listen well because we cannot commit even the most tiniest of mistakes here, if we want to leave this experience unscathed."

**XxX**

**H**ermione frowned at the pile of books at the table in front of her, she knew that the ritual has affected her in more ways than what she had described to her friends. That experience had shaken something inside of her that she had been fighting and denying for years, something that she convinced herself were only nerves and self doubt, something that was put in the back of her mind and forgotten thanks to the praise and words of those close to her.

But Dumbledore's memories had simply destroyed all the delusions that she herself had planted on her mind, the barriers were now simply completely destroyed, and she couldn't do nothing more than to stare at the truth and deal with it.

How blind was she? She actually believed that she was a prodigy, she actually believed all those praises and words of encouragement from her peers and tutors. She had actually believed the words of Sirius, that she was the brightest witch of the century, she took as proof of how great she was the praise of a man that was actually pretty delusional and probably in high need of medical attention. She had seriously believed him, and after that, she began to think of herself as a genius, a prodigy.

How foolish, she wasn't even close to be one, not after experiencing what being a true prodigy means, she had been in Dumbledore shoes, she had seen, done and experienced on first hand what was the feeling of rediscovering and even creating a new branch of magic, she even had the power to redefine the rules of what was possible and not.

She had been so close to begin a similar road a few years back, but she didn't, she simply couldn't deviate from what she tough was safe. The bluebell spell was the most creative she has been, and she had left that as something irrelevant compared to the importance of high marks on her essays. She simply fell back in the world that she knew and was comfortable with. Her answers where actually verbatim from the books she had read, word for word. Certainly she had made remarkable progress while learning and casting said spells, sometimes with too much ease.

But compared to what Dumbledore did on his childhood, she could not even measure herself against him.

"Hermione?"

The sudden appearance of Harry finally broke Hermione from her self loathing, she was startled and in part, frightened. She knew when she saw at his eyes, she knew what he was about to ask, a mere glance was enough for her to see how worried he was. Behind him stood Luna, looking at her with those big round silverly blue eyes of hers. She was frowning a little while inclining her head toward her right side. A signal that she was thinking furiously.

Hermione knew that she couldn't hide what she was experiencing, so she told them, both of them quickly took a chair and sat while listening, both obviously experiencing something akin to what she was experiencing herself. Harry was the first to talk. "I think that we are... jealous..."

Luna and Hermione looked at him, asking for more, he looked at the table, searching for the right words to express his idea. "Compared to our time in the school his, was relatively easy. He lived in tense times, but he wasn't actually living under the fear that a dark lord would suddenly kill all of them for not being pure or part of his movement. He had time and the determination to surpass the limits. And in fact it seemed that he lived on a time with less rules and restrictions of what could or not, be done with a wand."

He looked at them, smiling sheepishly then saying, "He just didn't care about what other people believed or told him about magic, he tested and tinkered all he could until he actually proved that it could be done differently. And it seemed that the professors simply didn't cared if he ended up hurt or killed..." He looked at his hands, not sure of how to explain what he was trying to say.

Luna frowned once more and said, "It seems that they were less restrictive in the past, but I clearly remember that some of the students that shared the school with him suddenly disappeared from his memories and that the teachers treated said disappearances as it was common." Hermione nodded immediately while Harry was trying to recall what he could of the experience. The brunette then decided to voice her agreement with Luna, "I can actually recall that in his fourth year a girl actually killed herself while she was trying to cast something in class. They were dismissed for the day, and none of them where actually shocked at was happened, surprised, yes, but shocked or even saddened, not much."

Luna nodded, and after a few seconds Harry actually confirmed that yes, they had experienced the same thing. "I can remember that, in fact. I can remember more, some of them actually lost..." He looked queasy, he wasn't accustomed to see so much blood, especially how brutal some of the injuries where.

"It seems that in the past, casualties were something expected while learning about magic, they weren't much, and few of them were actually fatal, but the risk seemed to be higher, especially in Transfiguration." Luna closed her eyes, trying to ignore the shudders of both of them, she knew what they were probably thinking, and she couldn't agree more.

What that seventh year student has done to himself while experimenting was nightmarish enough to understand why McGonagall was so extreme with her zero tolerance of foolishness.

"I am actually grateful for the restrictions that McGonagall impose in her class," Said Harry while Luna and Hermione just nodded. It seemed that transfiguration was even more dangerous than what they used to believe.

Luna seeing that they were getting away from what actually worried Hermione, said. "Don't compare yourself with Dumbledore, Hermione. Because you will lose and find yourself lacking, I believe all of us find ourselves lacking when compared to him, but that doesn't mean that we aren't capable of doing great things ourselves." She looked at Harry, then at Hermione. "We live on a time with more restrictions, and obviously more tense than his. We live in a fractured society, one that couldn't get over the damage that was inflicted in the war. We are stagnant, stuck on a time of constant fear and derision. Of jealousy and antipathy."

She breathed slowly, reaching for the hand of Harry to find some support, finding it quickly and getting more at easy. "That, and we didn't share the same motivation than him, Hermione. I think this has much more effect on you because both shared similar ideals. Both wanted to prove the doubtful wrong, that you where different from what they believed you capable of being and doing. But he hasn't the same obstacles as you Hermione." She looked at Harry, squeezing his hand harder than before.

"All of us had to survive and experience many things that he didn't, people were afraid of his potential, but did nothing to stop him thanks to what he was offering for the magical world. We weren't that lucky or powerful, Hermione had to suffer thought the latent bias of the war, so did Harry and so did I. Anything that seemed different was frowned upon, mostly because it broke the illusion that the magical world had been deluding itself after the victory of Riddle."

Harry looked at Luna, confused. "Victory?"

She nodded, then said, "All was lost on our side, Harry, it was just a matter of time before he defeated Dumbledore, you and I know that, after all we lived trough it in the ritual. Think closely, the society had resigned itself to the rule of Riddle, his ideals were set and believed. Then your mother and her ritual happened, and the head of the movement was vanished while it's corpse remained free to root itself more profoundly on our already defeated and fractured society. The most clever of his followers, and those other criminal factions flourished in the struggle of the reconstruction. Some of them clearly influencing the government and the society based on their believes. Riddle might have lost his body that Halloween, Harry. But his ideals remained and reshaped our world thanks to his followers and sympathizers, he lost a battle, but won the war, at least partially, but now he is back and might then finish what he started. Soon one of his followers will be put on the power and by our society no less, it's just a matter of time before he complete his idea of how the magical world should be."

Hermione looked at Luna, frowning in worry, "So you think that if the war hasn't happened, I would have been different from what I am right now?" She doubted it, but the look on Luna's face made her stop her own ramblings.

"Hermione I don't think, I know that all of us would have been different if our experiences in the school where different. Look at us now, we are completely different from what we used to be, first it was the Thundercats, now it's the crowns. Both are events that changed us greatly and I doubt that they are the last of them that we will experience on our lives. I don't know what or how would our lives have been if Harry wasn't transformed. But if the memories of Dumbledore are to be believed, I don't think I would have liked that future all that much."

Harry finally said, "That I can agree with, I will be frank with you girls, I am tired of all of this. I once saw this world as a way to get out of my horrid life with my relatives, but now that I have seen where this is directed, I don't think that I want to be part of this world anymore."

Hermione looked aghast while exclaiming a surprised "Harry!", but he immediately interrupted her.

"No Hermione, I am not talking of leaving magic behind, that would be a mistake that would cost us our lives sooner than later. I am talking about this society. I can already see it, even if Dumbledore's plans actually work, many of Tom followers will remain here to fight back at us in one way or another. Probably in the same fashion that how they confronted Dumbledore in the past. They will use any means to get at us, and with our condition, it's assured that the magical world will quickly ask for our heads when consumed by the fear. We might be careful and hide it, yes we could, but sooner or later some of us will slip and they will find what we are. They will claim betrayal and accuse us of monsters, aberrations to their believes, and no matter how much good we do, they will not trust in us anymore."

Hermione looked aghast for a second, then frowned and nodded. It was difficult to deny what Harry was saying. Luna on the other hand said. "I don't think that we would be well received even if we were normal. We represent something that they dislike, they are too attached to their ideals and way of life to accept change. it doesn't matter if they are from the light or the dark. The magical kingdom is simply too consumed by hatred and distrust. They are too attached to their old ways to accept change."

The brunette tried to say something, then closed her mouth, sighed and said, "I used to dream that I could change everything in this world. That they were just misguided and knew no better. But I was a foolish girl back then, doing the same mistake of imposing my belief upon everybody. Accusing and disliking everyone that didn't accept my vision." She tried to say more, but she obviously couldn't. Luna detached her hand from Harry's and immediately raised herself from her seat walked a little and sat on Hermione's legs, slowly hugging the distressed girl.

Harry sighed while looking at the girls comfort each another, he was about to join them on their silence when a sudden tough crossed his mind.

"We could leave then, no. We will leave then! Now that we don't have any attachment to this place, why stay here? We could simply buy a boat and travel around the world like I always dreamed so long ago."

Both Luna and Hermione looked at him and his enthusiasm, it was the first time in a long time that they could seem a semblance of happiness on his face. Luna frowned then smiled slowly, she seemed to like the idea very much. Hermione on the other hand said. "We need to plan this carefully, England actually had many colonies around the world. Or at least used to. We have already lost the control of some countries and are already loosing much more. But right now that might be only happening on the Muggle side. It's possible that the Magical still remains under British influence."

Luna nodded then asked, "Yes, that's true. But if we begin to put some buts in the idea, we might never get out of this place. I am willing to take the risk."

Harry smiled, looking like a little child in the process. "It might not be easy, but it offer a huge chance of freedom than what we could find here. We just need to be careful and prepare for any kind of trouble."

All of them smiled and discussed the idea over and over, trying to find a way to finally implement it.

**XxX**

**D**aphne looked at the boy while trying to think rationally, but she simply couldn't.

"Why can't you understand that this is not how it was supposed to be?"

The redhead on the other part, didn't seemed to understand her at all, and was in fact annoyed and hurt by her words. "So how was this supposed to be? With you controlling Harry and doing whatever you wanted? Is that how it was supposed to be?"

"NO!"

"Then tell me! Because it's looks that all you wanted in the end was to have it how your way. To control everything and do as you..."

Daphne immediately raised herself, "NO, it's not! This has nothing to do with my plot to get Potter, this has to do with the fact that I find myself loving you NOW, when I was pretty sure I didn't before all of this happened. You are an interesting boy Weasley, but you are a idiot and a jerk to boot. I only was feeling a wisp of a friendship begin between us. But then I am kidnapped and doused with lust potions, after that I am captured and RAPED by this being that for some reason decided to shag me like a common whore! I should loathe you! I should despise you! But I find myself unable to do so! So tell me Weasley, are this feelings my own, or just a construction created by the lust potion and whatever this damned cats did?"

She hated the fact that the hurt expression on his face actually bothered her. She should at least be in total control of her emotions at this moment, especially when the manacles were sealing all her magic. She despised the idea that she might have actually felt something for this boy. Absolutely loathed that once he tried to leave the room, she couldn't stand the notion of being utterly alone.

"WAIT! Please, I... just... Weasley. I... I just don't know how to deal with all of this. All my life I have been told how to walk, how to breath. All my life I just did as other commanded. My plot to catch Potter was my first and last attempt to gain freedom. I am sorry that I used you, I can't make amends to that. But I really like you... as a friend. I don't know if with time we could have been something more. But that again was stolen from me. Again someone else decided who I should love and I can't stand it. " She tried to control her emotions but she actually found hard to do so. She cursed herself when a sob escaped her mouth. She could feel that he was about to leave, and a big part of her wanted him to leave before her resolution finally changed. But again, something urged her to stop him.

"Weasley, please. Just... please. Don't leave me alone."

The red headed boy looked at her, he was obviously confused and hurt by everything she had said, and she couldn't evade nor ignore how much it bothered her.

"We were becoming friends Weasley, please. Be my friend. I don't have anything but my clothes and you in this world. I am not ready for anything else than friendship." She heard him try to approach her, and she immediately had a panic attack. "STOP, PLEASE STOP! just don't come any closer than that. I want you close to me, but not that close." She was breathing hard, she despised the fact that she couldn't control her body from trembling as his presence.

"I don't bloody understand you, Greengrass..." She could hear the ire on his voice, again she had hurt him and she cursed the fact that she couldn't control her body and mind as she used to.

"Don't touch me, Weasley. No, PLEASE, just hear me. It's not that I despise your presence. But I am more afraid of what I will do if you touch me. I have this need to do... _things _with you that scares me to death. I want to have control over my body Weas... Ron, please. Just be my friend. It's all I ask."

He was trembling, she could see how all his body was actually trembling and she couldn't for her won life actually discern what caused said reaction. Ire? Sadness? Lust? She looked at the floor at the last idea, especially when her body betrayed her so throughly at the mere idea of him lusting after her. She gasped in surprise when she heard him curse, then sat on the floor with his back to the wall. He was crying, and the mere sound was breaking her will entirely.

He looked at her, he could see that she had broke something inside of him. "All right Greengrass, I will be your friend. It's better than nothing."

She smiled at that, even if part of her was actually pretty hurt at hearing those words. She tried to ignore how much it hurt to see him like that. But it was for the best.

**XxX**

**F**red looked carefully how the potion began to slowly change its color, he slowly began to mix counter clockwise, while George began to wave his wand around the cauldron clockwise, slowly eroding the different ingredients on the mix that had so far been separated by a tin but strong layer of magic.

This has been so far, the most complicated piece of magic that they had ever attempted to do. The potion was ridiculously hard to make and required a delicate mix of knowledge and ability that had let them exhausted and grumpy for several nights. So far they had barely managed to avert the suspicion of their peers and teachers by pretending to be on a silent war between them. Sadly they had noticed that this had caused a division between their friends, especially Lee and their respective girlfriends. They had been trying to make them resolve their problems but they had stubbornly 'resisted' each attempt at a high price.

Angelina and Katie so far had been pretty much understanding of their situation, but the fact that the girls had begun to notice some inconsistencies on their stories and excuses had been noticed, and they knew that sooner or later they would be approached.

George slowly moved his wand sharply toward him, as if he was trying to stab him with it. Causing the mix to stop simmering for a few seconds before each ingredient began to slowly separate in different pools that couldn't or wouldn't mix between them not mattering how much Fred slowly mixed them in the beverage.

Slowly and meticulously Fred extracted the silverly spoon while George slowly began to gather the different beverages on three different cauldrons, each made with a different alloy and of course a different temperature. They were supposed to leave the different beverages boil on different paces before they even attempted to begin the next part. Both were exhausted and in a great need of sleep, but if the book was to be believed they needed to do at least seven different procedures before they could let the potion on stasis for two more days on a copper cauldron.

Fred looked at George and nodded, knowing that they didn't have time to lose resting, if they wanted some time to sleep later.

**XxX**

**L**ady Augusta Longbottom slowly huffed on exasperation while she waited for her grandson to be gathered. She certainly didn't have much time to waste with pleasantries when so much was at risk at the moment.

McGonagall obviously didn't appreciated the abrupt way she had suddenly appeared on the school demanding to see her grandson, she did in fact have some grave news to exchange with the Headmistress, but her priorities lied with her family first.

Once the clearly annoyed woman had brought her now sweating grandson. And after a few tense and clipped words, Minerva left them alone, clearly annoyed and insulted at the sudden dismissal. Augusta didn't have much time for formalities, not when she had so many forbidden objects upon her at the moment.

Once they were completely sure that no one was listening or watching what was about to happen thanks to a few well placed charms. Augusta did finally relax a little.

"I hope you truly know what you are doing child, because if not. Then this would mean the end of our family". She told him while she quickly gave him the last ingredients and tools to complete his plan.

Neville nodded, "I know Grandma, believe me, I know". He quickly stashed the ingredients on a magically enlarged bag that he held beneath his robes, clearly ignoring the disapproving glare of his grandmother in the process.

"You only have one week before you lost the change to do the ritual on the full moon. If you lose that opportunity, you will destroy all the evidence and forget about this foolish idea once and for all. I am clear?" Her tone was clipped and let no space for nonsense.

Neville nodded and for her surprise, hugged her before he parted from the place as quick as he could, leaving her there speechless for a few seconds before she managed to control herself. The door opened again and this time a clearly annoyed Minerva McGonagall entered, obviously misunderstanding the sudden and abrupt parting of Neville as part of some fight between her and her grandchild.

"I hope this was satisfactory for you Augusta".

Augusta quickly ignored the imprudence of the woman before her, mostly because she simply didn't have time to confront or debate with her how to raise her charge.

"It is in fact, very satisfactory. But this will be a conversation for another time. And believe me. We will talk about this. However I need to prepare you for what's to come to Hogwarts".

She immediately saw a change in the demeanor of the woman, knowing that she had now her complete attention. "Malfoy is clearly moving his pieces with the board of governors. Especially now with Dumbledore sudden disappearance. Many of those that don't share his... view. About how the school should be managed have been trying to resist his campaign. But I fear that there is nothing we can do to stop him from relieving you from the Headmistress position."

"HE CAN'T..."

"He can, and he did. The board of governors has such power and he obviously will not stop until he haves a complete control of the school. This is not his first time trying to do so. He probably will try to maintain you as a teacher and nothing more. But the position of Headmaster and Deputy Headmaster will be given to more... 'qualified wizards'.

"This is preposterous! we certainly can't let him do as he pleases. You have to do something!" Augusta could see that the woman was not taking well the news.

"As long as he held a big part of the governors on his pocket. There is nothing we could actually do. And that's not all. I am afraid that his campaign of hatred toward Muggleborns is about to be approved by the Wizengamont. So far this has not been immediately implemented mostly thanks to the warring factions, as he has lost supporters on said struggle. But he is surely pressuring the Wizengamont to choose a Minister on this dire times".

Minerva seemed to blanch at what she was hearing, now her offense at how she had been treated while reaching for Neville, clearly forgotten. "How much time we have before this happen?"

Augusta closed her eyes, clearly not liking at all what she had to say. "Probably six weeks at most, before Lucius Malfoy controls the Ministry and Hogwarts completely..."

**XxX**

**W**hen Dumbledore woke up, he had been told by one of the elves what had exactly happened in the castle concerning the children, what he heard created such a mix of feelings inside of him that he simply couldn't place. He was weak and barely holding on to his life, it was just a matter of time before he left this world. But first he needed to do many things before that, talking to Harry was one of those.

He told the elf to search for Harry, an to ask him to give an old man some minutes of his times. He knew that this wasn't gonna be an easy task. But he must know, he needed to see if what he heard was actually right. He actually needed to know if this resolution of Harry was actually his, or one created by the ritual.

He groaned, his body felt heavy and seemed to be about to fail, it was probably just mere luck that he was alive at the moment, the ritual of assimilation took a lot out of him, much more than just memories and experience, it actually made him sick to think of how close and similar was that ritual to the one used to create a Horcrux.

He heard the door opening, and someone getting closer but not by much his bed, he opened his eyes and he found Harry there, who seemed contrite and divided at the moment. That satisfied him a great deal, it seemed that the boy hasn't lost himself in the ritual.

"Harry..."

"I don't know what to feel, you know? I think I hate you, loathe you in fact. But it feels wrong, Especially after I knew what is was like to be in your shoes. What you had to endure, and how much you did to actually help me, even when it wasn't the kind of help I actually wanted.

"I..."

"You don't have or need to justify your actions, I saw them, I tough them. I understand them, even when I really don't want to. I understand them, and worse. I understand you. It was sadly, the best you could do with what you had, even if you were negligent at some points."

The silence permeated the room after he heard the boy say that, he was sad, satisfied but awfully sad by his words. So devoid of emotion, so be it good or bad.

"I was so... close to lost myself to you. In fact, I actually found myself wanting to be you at a point. Only the intervention of the girls managed to woke me up and fight against it. I wanted to have the power to do as I wanted without consequence. I could have defeated Riddle, I could have defeated his followers, I could have rebuild our society to be greater, better and fairer. But I was deluding myself in your power, I discovered that I wasn't that different from you even before the ritual happened. And I don't like that. I found that for all of your power, you simply couldn't change a thing, and that to do as you actually wanted, you would have to destroy many things including entire lives to get your way."

He saw the boy, no, the man before him with something akin to respect at how much he had grown up in such a little amount of time. He could even feel himself growing bolder to think that it was his crude actions what gave this man his actual point of view. But he wasn't that foolish, he knew that Harry had the potential to be more than what he had set himself to be.

"But then, even when I understand you perfectly, I can't share your wish to build that utopia, because that's what your dream really is, an utopia. I saw you waste your life and potential trying to change things for the better and be fought all the way from people that don't want to change. I am now aware that to really create a change in our world, a bloodbath is unavoidable. And I don't want to be part of that."

He frowned a little after hearing him, especially as he actually heard what he didn't wanted to hear. He sighed, now more tired than ever, he had his hopes, but he knew that it wasn't going to happen, he couldn't change that. And more precisely, even when he could change it, he wouldn't.

"I will not lie to you, Harry. To see that you don't want anything more with your peers, saddens me a great deal. But then, it's reasonable for you to feel this way, we have done so much damage to you, and to wait for you to become our savior after we openly hated you, is an act of hypocrisy. Yes, Miss Lovegood is right, this society of ours doesn't deserve to be saved, but I can't not simply force you to fight this battle. Not when you want to..."

"Don't put words in my mouth, sir. I didn't say I don't want to fight. I will fight this war for my friends and those that actually don't deserve this world. But I will not become their savior, I will not become a puppet to a government that's rotten to the core, and that will do as it can to undermine my influence and conserve its own. I will not be part of this society anymore, that's all. I will do what I can to see Riddle burning up in hell, and that's a statement not a promise."

He couldn't stop the smile on his face, to see this man do what he had denied himself long ago. He truly hoped that he would not fall into the same traps that he let himself be trapped, foolishly thinking that he could change everything from the inside out.

"So you truly wish to leave United Kingdom? To travel around the world? To see how is life outside this place without the pressure of being the chosen one? Probably only returning to this place under certain circumstances?"

He saw Harry frown from his words, and couldn't prevent the smile on his face from widening when he inclined his head, acknowledging what he said.

"I see that your mind is as sharp as ever even when your body is about to collapses sir."

He chuckled after hearing that, even if the action was actually painfully reminded him of how damaged he really was.

"I myself was tempted to do what you are going to do, Harry. But there is where our similitudes actually end. You are aware of what lies ahead of you, I didn't have an example of what will happen to me if I choose the path I did. That, and my desire for power was what sealed my own destiny. It is in the end, our own choices that define what we will become, Harry."

The black haired young man seemed to finally relax in front of him, but not enough if his still guarded position could be believed, good. He was set on the right path, then.

"It's hard to do as you did when I actually saw and knew where that particular path would lead me. I truly don't want to be part of a society that doesn't know if to hate or love me, so they would choose instead to control me and use me as much as they want."

"Like they did to me?"

"Exactly".

He chuckled again, now aware that his body had reached the power to activate the ritual if he wanted to. But now wasn't the moment, and he had to change some things to his array and plans thanks to Harry new resolution. He needed more time, something that he was aware he didn't have much, so he had to improvise.

"So you now know that we actually shared a dream, isn't it?"

"To travel around the world? Yes, I must admit that I was surprised when I tough of that. Its an old dream of mine when I was under the care of my relatives. To go around the world without any wall, or roof over me. To be free, truly free to do as I want".

He couldn't actually dislike the boy for his desire of freedom, he at a point has desired the same, only to for that possibility to be taken away from him. How could his life turned out to be if he had managed to do that? He stills wonders, maybe he would be a better person, maybe with Elphias he could have found that happiness that he couldn't with Gellert, or maybe not in both accounts. Maybe this was what Harry really needed, to live his own life before he come back? For once, he was struggling with himself, and found that his morals were losing against his selfishness. No, he wouldn't try to do to Harry what was done to him, in fact, he found himself desiring to help him to get out of this place, even if that made him somewhat jealous.

"Harry, maybe if you are truly willing to trust in me one last time, I could help you in that dreams of yours. I just ask you to give me one last chance for me to gain your trust".

He didn't had to wait too long for him to answer.

"I don't want to, a big part of me doesn't truly want to trust you. But I am not blind to how much you helped me too, even when you didn't need to do so. And the more I though about what you told us before the ritual, the more I understand you and your reasons. So yes, sir, I might give you one last chance to help me before you pass away."

"Harry, I am so-"

"Please, sir. Save it. Right now I am not prepared to truly forgive you. Even when I know understand you better than ever, I can't simply forgive you that easily. With time, I might, especially as I know what you truly sacrificed at this point to save me. Even more with what you plan to do in a few hours if not days... So this helps of yours, does it involves Elphias Doge?"

He saw the young man in front of him and couldn't evade his uneasiness, so this was how it feels to be in this position? Now he truly understood why some people disliked him for doing this to them, it was strange for his intention to be clear as water to others even without the use of mind reading.

"You are in fact correct, the source of how I wish to help you is Elphias, an old memento of the two of us and what could have been, had been stored and under his care all this time. He had little use of it nowadays, and I am sure that if I explain to him my intentions, he would gladly accept to part from it."

He saw him tough of it, apparently aghast that he hasn't or couldn't recall perfectly some part of his past. That simple action put his mind at easy, Harry wasn't overwhelmed and changed by the experience, in front of him was Harry Potter, and not another shade of himself pretending to be Harry, that served to calm some of his fears.

"With the help of Elphias Doge, you will leave the country as you want, and none will be the wiser. But, to do so he would need some time, and I am afraid that I will be long go when he is actually ready to help you out. Are you absolutely sure that you can defend yourself and your friends in this conditions?"

He saw the eyes of the young man harden at the mere tough of someone trying to hurt his friends, and he knew at that moment, without the need of a single word, his answer.

"Good, then you could go now, I will send Pen with a note to Elphias and he will do what he can, could you take care of him too, Harry? If that's not much to ask?"

"I don't think it will be much trouble, I could learn a lot from him, maybe remember that not matter what happens, I could still go on in life with my head held high."

He smiled proudly after hearing him say that, he had grown up so much, maybe his sins had been worthwhile after all.

"Sir... Albus, you asked me if I could forgive you, and I gave you what I truly feel about it. But if one thing I can clearly remember from the ritual, is what exactly impulsed you to do all of this, Albus, maybe instead of asking others for forgiveness, you need to actually ask if you are willing to forgive yourself."

He tough hard what Harry said, but then couldn't prevent the chuckle that escaped his lips, he had been honest toward him, the least he could do is be honest to the young lad.

"I cannot lie to you, Harry, but that's an impossibility at this point, and I am quite set on that".

He frowned when he saw a hint of sadness in the boys eyes, but as soon as that appeared, it had dissipated, as if it never happened. Harry nodded and walked out of the room, leaving him only alone for a single second before Pen appeared at his side, a frown on his scarred face told him that he had heard the interchange. It was obvious that he wasn't happy with how he asked the boy to take care of him.

"I know you don't like my decisions old friend, especially as you share the same opinion as Fawkes in this. But I am quite set on this. He will be a good master, and would need you at his side when he doubts himself. And of course, I need you to take care of him, if you saw even a hint of myself taking control of him, you are to protect him and help his ladies to do what's needed to save or stop him. Now, can you write this for me? Dear Elphias...

**XxX**

Half an hour later, Harry found himself in the kitchen, talking with a tired red head.

"This is a disaster, not at all how I though my life would turn out to be". Said Ron, then drinking some of his butter-beer. Harry grunted an acknowledgment to that while he was sipping his own drink, once he drained it all, he put his glass on the table and said.

"Before all of this happened, I had this dumb idea of living a normal life, you know? A job at the ministry, a wife, maybe two or more kids. Not having to worry at all about a psychopath trying to off me. Hell, if it wasn't for the cat, I would have forgotten about my old dreams of traveling the world..."

"Yeah, I always tough that I would end up with Hermione, and that you would suddenly find attractive my little sister and we would officially be brothers. I admit I am still jealous for you getting Hermione, but I am not angered by it. Not anymore at least... yeah... I think I actually like Daphne, you know? But she doesn't seems to share the feeling, at least not entirely. What happened between us wasn't that great to begin with, so... I find myself thinking: 'what would have happened between us if _that _didn't happen? ' would I be still longing for Hermione?"

The red head sighed, then looked toward his hand that still had the butter-beer, and in a single movement he actually gulped the whole thing, belching loudly afterwards. Harry didn't said anything, giving him some time to order his mind.

"I don't know what would have happened, but what happened, happened, I can't change that, I wouldn't change that. Even if I did things to her that I am not sure she can forgive me for, she is alive. I... I don't know what would have happened to me if she isn't..."

"I know Ron, I feel the same toward the girls... and I can't deny that I it would wound me deeply if I lost you too, at least I finally made my promise to Ginny and got you out of that mess".

The sudden gasp he heard from Ron told him immediately that he had forgotten the same thing that his friend.

"Bloody hell Harry, I forgot about my family, I honestly forgot about my family! I need to leave, they need to know that I am alive, mum is probably going spare with worry, they probably tough that I am death too. I need to leave Harry, my family needs me!"

"We can't leave this place Ron, at least not right now. Wait until Dumbledore gets better and tells us how to get out of here. But, you could use Dobby to send them a message, as we don't have owls available at the moment."

"That's a good idea, I should send him to tell the twins that we are fine!"

"The twins? Why the twins? I thought you wanted to reassure your mum."

"I want, but she might send the mother of all howlers to me with Dobby, this way the Twins get to tell her and can somewhat alleviate my punishment when I do have to go to her."

**XxX**

"**H**e's alive, Fred, the little bugger is alive!" Shouted George while reading the letter that the crazy elf had leaved him before he dissaparated as soon as he could. Both twins were actually jumping, screaming and crying their eyes out in the abandoned classroom, awfully close to their work area so they stopped immediately, fearing that they could destroy days of hard work in a single euphoric moment.

"Where is he? Why hasn't he come back with the others? Doesn't he know how utterly or parent had been with his disappearance and supposed death?"

George continued reading the letter, his brown furrowing in worry as he advanced, and causing his brother to sweat profusely with worry. Then he finally reached it's end and shared the letter, waiting for him to reach the end.

"This is bad, they don't even know where they are, and apparently Dumbledore is one and a half foot on the grave, and we can't even trust in the damn leader of light if this is to be believed! We need to tell Ginny, and our parents too." Said Fred, obviously not seeing what George saw implied in that letter.

"I don't think you see the full thing here, brother."

"What? What I am missing?"

"That our little brother told us to tell mum that he is alive, so are the others, he left us the responsibility to give that little news to her..."

"That... little bugger."

"Yes, yes he is..."

Both stopped their diatribe once they heard two knocks on the door, soon followed by five others in a obvious pattern. They stood still with their wands completely drawn and prepared to fight when after a minute of waiting one last know was know and the door finally opened, to let in Ginny and Neville.

"If you value your health, you would tell us what..."

"Scarecrow, and you both managed to prank Bill six years ago by making him think that my gift to him was yours and yours was mine. He had loved long hair since, and mum hasn't really forgiven both of you for that."

Both twins put aside their wands, Fred quickly closing the door and giving his sister the letter, who then gave it to Neville.

"We have to, no, we _need _to tell our parents right away!".

George looked at Fred and both saw the same apprehension in the other face.

"This isn't time to be afraid of mum howlers you cowards!"

Fred cringed at her tune, and so did George, but it was surprisingly both recovered quickly.

"Ginny, we can't, just look around you. What do you see? See those cauldrons full of an illegal potion that need a lot of attention to get the result we want? We can't alert mum without her coming her demanding answers, she will find right away that all of us are hiding something from her, you know we can actually lie to her. Much less we want to lie for this, and even if we tell her, she will ask the exact reason for why we are even attempting this. And then we would break her heart once more by telling her that this was all Harry's fault... and, even If I am angry at him, I can't... we can't do that to him."

Neville finally said something.

"And is probable that McGonagall and others would be there, so we would then reveal what they are now. The risk is too high, especially with Malfoy on the power. If he hears that, it's just a matter of time he finds that it was probably Ron who actually mauled his son, and would soon claim for his head, and the head of Harry and the others in one single pack... But none of that is necessary if you send her a letter telling her that Ron contacted you, and that he well and with Dumbledore. That would put your parents at easy and the fault where it belongs, on Dumbledore."

The sudden silence that found him on the place put him quite uncomfortable, especially as all of them looked at him with their mouths quite open. At least until Ginny finally broke up the tension with a little happy 'squee', then launched herself at him and proceeded to hug his innards out of him.

The twins nodded to the other, both then squealing themselves to the surprise and sudden horror of Ginny and Neville, who tried to get away when suddenly they found themselves hugged from two different directions by the two boys with the same enthusiasm than she had previously displayed.

**XxX**

**I**t took three days for Dumbledore to be strong enough to walk, and that took at least a dozen of potions and many other magical treatments, and stills after all of that he could barely stand on his feet's for a while and to walk he strongly needed a walking stick to help him, he actually looked for the first time his age, if not older.

Harry being the only teenager that actually talked to the old man, convinced him to release Ron and Daphne, convinced that even if they couldn't control their cats, he alongside Luna and Hermione could control them. Dumbledore only accepted to release the teens if he could release one by one, so if something goes wrong it would be fair more easier for the three of them to control him, than a fight against two.

That's how they found themselves again on the library, awfully aware of what had happened the last time they had put a foot on the place. The first one to be releases was Ron, claiming that if something was not right, at least his friends would not be attacking a girl.

Daphne didn't liked this, but decided to shut her mouth after a cold look from Hermione and even Luna, reminding her that it wasn't a great idea to antagonize them when they actually were in charge here.

Once Dumbledore removed the restraints from the redhead, he barely could get out of the way of a now struggling and raging teen that barely could take control of his body. Harry charged immediately followed by the girls and the three managed to control the tiger for enough time for Dumbledore to put back the manacles, and as soon as they closed, Ron could finally control his body.

Surprisingly Daphne rushed to his side, trying to see if he was alright. And once everybody calmed themselves, they decided to talk about it.

"What the hell happened? It wasn't like that with us! Why is different with them?" Exclaimed Harry, truly at lost here, that actually looked like his mental fight against Jäger. Once he told the girls this, they confirmed that, that now that he mention it, its exactly what it looked like.

"If you don't mind myself intruding there, I must ask you, what is like to be one of yours? It is like the Werewolf curse?"

Surprisingly none of them answered immediately, but he could not resent them the distrust. Surprisingly Luna instead of Harry was the one to speak first.

"Can you take an oath to not reveal that information to anyone else so be it in life or death? Are you capable enough to survive such an oath?"

Dumbledore tough a little, and then nodded, as long as he was under those potions he was strong enough for that little thing. But he doubted that after that he would be ready to any other kind of magic. So once he was delivered his wand under the vigilant gaze of all the presents, he gave his oath, then returned the wand to the little blond without doubt. Even with that secure measure, the teens doubted a little before they told him what he needed to hear, he stopped the conversation from going further from that, immediately noticing an appreciative nod from the brown headed girl.

"First, I recommend to you to learn Occlumency, not only for the protection it can gift your mind, but when truly mastered, it can gave you complete control of your toughs, this isn't something that could be learned in a single day, not even a week. They are different ways to learn it. Some are quite violent, it literally builds up a resistance to the feeling of an intrusion, it even helps you later to get said intruder out of your mind. Sadly this method denies you of your privacy, and the result is only on the ability to trow out an intruder from your mind, some speculate that it even helps against spirits possessions, but it hasn't been verified. If you still had a piece of Voldemort in your scar, Harry, I would have tried or put someone else in charge to teach you that method, even if it is the most brutal of them. The ability to prevent yourself from being possessed by Tom, even if in theory, was too good to let it pass."

"By why not teach him another one? And then try to teach him that?" Asked Hermione, once the old man stopped himself to take a breath. "Don't take me wrong, but it doesn't sound ethical, its sounds as downright torture, almost as if you are training someone to endure the pain by hurting him enough times for him to get accustomed to it, and stand it better."

Dumbledore nodded, painfully aware that that's exactly what that method was.

"The other method it's more peaceful and doesn't need the constant invasion of the mind, but it takes weeks if not months or years to master it to its full extend. To completely control your mind and your toughs, to think of nothing and to void your mind of everything is not something that involves magic in fact, I believe Muggles call it, meditation."

Luna looked confused for a moment, "But you said before that the violent method constantly used magic to test the mind, then...

"That is actually true, but the results aren't the same. Even if both methods are classified as Occlumency, the original method doesn't involve magic at all, that's why it's so hard for many wizards to learn it, the fact that the Muggles could do it easily and in mass in some parts of the world was disliked. So two hundred and fifty six years ago, the ministry was approached with a new and completely magical method. The result was initially doubted, but with time some of the assaulted began to recognize any kind of intrusion on their minds, and immediately repelled them. Sadly this method was not only harsh itself, but it could cause great damage in the hands or in this case, the mind of the tester. So one hundred and twenty two years later, the magic mind was deemed too close to dark magic for the taste of many and was soon frowned upon. It is not illegal, but it is not exactly accepted either. The books on the arts are heavily monitored, and not many have access to it."

Harry nodded, truly understanding but not liking what he heard, he would not submit his friends to such a torture, and seeing them closely, they didn't seemed to like it that much either. Daphne was the first to voice her opinion.

"Then that means that we will take the hard method. Is a Muggle could learn it, there is nothing that says we can't."

Harry frowned at her tone, so did many of the presents, but all of them knew that it would take a while for her to see their point of view. Something that they were actually willing to stand just for Ron's sake. Luna on the other hand.

"You know that having the manacles on you means that you will be living from now on without access to your magic, right?"

That statement actually caught off guard the black haired girl, in fact it was so good that it caught Ron too, if the identical look of complete panic on their faces was to judge by.

"Don't worry, not having magic isn't a great deal. You could still use other means, and it's only temporary, that should make it easier to focus on learning to meditate harder, isn't it?" Said Hermione, while looking at both of them. Harry nodded then said.

"You will be protected while you learn to control your mind, in fact, all of us will be learning how to meditate along you. It seems something that we too should learn, especially what awaits for us once our crowns fall off."

Harry looked at Dumbledore, who seemed at peace and controlled even when he was in such a position right now, maybe that was how he managed to maintain himself collected all the time, by controlling not only his body, but his mind too. He saw Hermione and Luna nodding at his words, and a little smile on Dumbledore's lips.

"So be it, then. And sir, please, if you don't mind teaching me, Luna and Hermione how to take the manacles, please."

"I don't mind, but after that I need to leave, this has taken longer than I anticipated, and I need to reunite myself with my backup plan. Now that you have decided to leave Britain once this war was over."

Harry nodded, being aware of that plan thanks to the ritual, but strangely, the details of it were muddled and seemed hard to recollect. Dumbledore noticed immediately the expression on all teens and clarified.

"As young Lovegood asked myself not long ago, so have my contacts, so my mind is under an oath to prevent any leakage of their identities. But not the actual knowledge that we were discussing about."

Dumbledore immediately noticed that he had the attention of all of them, so he clarified again.

"As we discussed days ago, I had some people on stand by if something happened to me in the ritual. I set them off to search some items that are needed for my ritual to finally be complete."

Ron asked confused.

"Your ritual, isn't that over now?"

Luna decided to elaborate some more.

"Not that one, Ronald, but one that involves the Headmaster body and that will surely end up with his death and that of Voldemort."

Dumbledore nodded once all gazes were upon him, but clearly wasn't gonna show the other teens what he had to the trio. Harry broke the silence by asking:

"How and when do you need to leave?"

"In one hour I would need to go to meet them."

"I will go with you, then."

"Harry..."

"Hermione, like it or not I am involved in this directly, and if you think carefully on your memories, you could see exactly what kind of magic is involved here. I need to know if his contacts are in fact, truthful."

"It's not that, Harry, I only wanted to ask why only you?"

"Because I know you, Hermione, you are dying to read all you can of those shelves, as long as they are not cursed, I don't mind you doing so. And Luna isn't that different. Aside from that, it isn't actually dangerous, I have a suspect or two of who or what exactly they are. I think you two suspect the same by those smiles of yours."

Both girls nodded, then Luna said.

"We don't mind, Harry. We just thought that you wanted to leave us out of any danger. But if you assure us that nothing bad will happen, then we will trust in you."

"I assure you girls, that Harry is not in any kind of dang..." Dumbledore immediately stop himself from going further than that after seeing the glowering glares that he received at his intrusion on their moment. "Right, I will shut up now."

It seemed that only Harry was willing to give him a change of forgiveness at the moment.

**XxX**

**O**ne awful travel by Portkey later landed them on a rater deteriorated house, where Harry immediately found himself at wand point by many people, at least until he recognized some of them.

"Sirius? Professor Lupin?"

Both men immediately put away their wands, both gasping a elated and confused "Harry?!" At the same time. Their reaction followed closely by a tired chuckle from Dumbledore, managed to get the others to down their guards.

"Dumbledore, what's the meaning of this? I thought Potter was declared Missing weeks ago. But not mattering that, what's he doing in the headquarters? Are you out of your mind!" Screeched Augusta Longbottom, trying to understand what exactly was happening there. A regal woman with a monocle nodded her head too, not taking away her eyes from Potter and more especially, the Crown on his head, her wand was lowered but still visible.

"I must agree with the Longbottom dame, you owns us an explanation and it better be a good one." Said the woman with the monocle.

Mad eye Moody grunted, his wand lowered but directly pointing in Harry's direction. Dumbledore tried to alleviate their fears, but his strength seemed to abandon him for a second and if not for the quick reflexes of Harry, he would have crashed hard against the floor.

"I told you that you would need your walking stick, sir."

The old man chuckled tiredly, slowly trying to raise himself to his feet but finding himself unable to do so, Harry raised his eyes to ask for a chair, and found himself again at wand point by several of the people missing, he frowned in annoyance.

"What are you looking at? Bring a bloody chair!"

"We will not move an inch until you tell us what is happening and who are you..."

A man that seemed to be hiding on the shadows of the poorly illuminated room finally said.

"Black, bring Dumbledore a chair, he clearly did something foolish to himself, Lupin bring him some fresh water. And all the others, down your wands."

"But, Croaker..."

"I said, lower your wands, we have now too much at risk for one of you to ruin it by a misplaced spell. _Put away your wands!_"

It only took a few minutes for everyone to be settled, Harry noticed some people he actually knew by name, like Sirius, Lupin, Moody and Augusta Longbottom, the woman with the monocle seemed familiar in a way, so did the man with the red hair and earring. The guy with the dark hood on the other hand was an unknown to him.

Once he calmed himself Dumbledore finally said:

"I am happy to say that I have some good news, but saddened to inform you of some bad. But first, what's more important. Amelia, Alastor, William, I can see that you disapprove of Harry presence, but I can assure you that he is vital to my plans."

Amelia, the woman with the monocle immediately raised her voice.

"This wasn't part of the deal, Dumbledore, I will not involve kids in this war."

Harry laughed bitterly at her words, managing to scowl many faces there. So before someone voiced their disapproval he said his mind.

"How many of you have fought Voldemort and lived? Oh, right, you are too busy shivering at the mere mention of his name to be aware that I have been in front of him three times and lived to tell the tale."

"That had nothing to do with war..."

"Oh, right, I forgot that Voldemort and his followers respected the life of innocents that much, how foolish of me to think that I those that they despise are not already involved in this war. What was I thinking?"

"How dare you..."

"Enough of this!" Saul Croaker bellowed, catching the attention of all the present here. Once he caught their undivided attention, he immediately asked.

"How much time do we have to off Voldemort thanks to your reckless actions?"

That caused all of them to open their eyes comically, Harry was sure that if they opened a little more many of those would be falling from their sockets. Dumbledore on the other hand, closed his eyes and said.

"I have at most, a week before I pass away..."

It took almost an hour for Dumbledore to finally tell them everything, except the new condition of Harry, in fact, everyone seemed rater perturbed by what they had heard and wasn't putting too much attention on him. Especially when it was revealed that they finally found the last Horcrux thanks to Sirius heritage.

"It was just a matter of getting to the bank without being seen, once there, I claimed the Black vault and after that, I spend almost all the fortune to the goblins to demand a retribution to the Lestranges. And as they didn't appeared on the bank at the ridiculously short time I spend my money to get set, I claimed their vault and took away the Horcrux with help of Bill here as reward. I left all the money to not set an notice to them... it was painfully and way too easy for my taste."

Croaker couldn't evade adding something there.

"It was easy because the Lestrange did have a relation to the Black family thanks to their marriage with Bellatrix. Only the fact that you caused the Goblins to become richer prevented them from giving you away to the Ministry, add to that that their family isn't as important as it one was, and thanks to their new status what you asked was possible. If you tried to do that with another unrelated vault, or like example, against the Malfoy's, who have much more money and power nowadays than the Blacks, you would be then captured and used to get a deal with Lucius. You are lucky enough that the man has been blinded by his position on the Ministry to remember you."

Remus snorted, so did Amelia.

"How could he not have luck? He almost bathed himself in Felix Felicis to find the Horcruxes, all of us did and it was only because of that that some of us are actually alive at the moment. Sadly we couldn't use it daily..." Said Bill Weasley for the sake of Harry, who actually didn't know about what they did so far.

Croaker nodded and said,"You are lucky to be even alive. In huge amounts it can be quite venomous, or bring the other kind of luck. But how you procured said items doesn't not matter at this time, just the results. Happily Voldemort ego worked to our benefit, and he wouldn't know what hit him, and thanks to Dumbledore idiocy it doesn't matter where he hides himself, he will die, a shame we couldn't say the same from his followers."

It was at that point that Dumbledore finally spoke again, his words actually freezing all of the people on their spots.

"I decided to take another step for the cause, but to do so I would need to modify the rune array, and add the Protean charm of the Dark mark to be also linked to my life. It wouldn't have the same desire as that of Voldemort, but it can be quite draining, so all of those that use the Dark mark would be weak afterwards or would become a Squib. I am not exactly sure of the results, but my calculus sides to the latter."

Harry could actually see how much this seemed to impact on all presents, but before anyone protested about what has been voiced, Mad eye put himself on his feet and said.

"What do you need for that to happen?"

That caused the whole place to erupt in a huge cacophony of screams, everyone seemed to have a different opinion of that. Some screaming of dark magic, (Amelia Bones) to screams of how much someone needed a good shag and how he was desperate for one too while looking at Amelia... (Sirius). In the end, the explosion caught everyone by surprise, and Harry saw then the smoking point of a wand that belonged to the man named Croaker.

"I can't believe I sided myself to such a bunch of brats, we aren't playing here, I thought all of you was aware of what's at stake here. We all knew that we were planing on taking lives with our schemes, this is war. That's what is supposed to happen, you _kill_ your enemies before they kill you. What Dumbledore is doing is inclining the balance toward us for the first time in a long time. And here you are, all fighting and even _defending_ the rights of those that we were going to kill in the first place..."

Amelia sat herself after all, not fully happy on what was said, Augusta frowned but didn't said nothing about that. Especially as they were gonna break a Taboo at the magical world. Sirius looked uneasy, but that might be thanks to the hateful glare that Amelia had trow at him. The rest just looked pensive about what was told. And Harry just decided to keep his own opinion, especially as he noticed that even the supposed good side was horrified at the idea of taking away the magic from someone else. He saw toward Dumbledore, fully aware that he might be trying to test them, to see how they might react to the information of what he was and what he could do.

If the frown and disappointed expression on his face to judge by, almost all of them clearly failed at his test. Especially it seemed to deflate him somewhat, as it was now clear that Harry and his ilk would not be safe in the magical kingdom. That cemented his decision to help him leave the country. Its the least he could actually do.

"My decision is final, but I can't force any of you to help me in this endeavor, as it will take away your life along mine. I..."

Mad eye Moody intervened.

"I will do it, I in fact claim that if anyone want to take my place on this ritual, it had to be over my death cold body. But you have not answered my question, Albus, what do you need for this to happen."

Nobody protested his claim.

Albus nodded then said, "Then is settled, and I will answer you in private, Alastor, as the knowledge of what I am to do should simply die with myself. All my notes were burned and the ashes vanished. Nothing will stay." He looked at Croaker, getting a firm nod.

"I will assure you that the Unspeakables will not investigate this further than the initial investigation, and that misdirection will maintain your secret where it belongs, with you."

It was at that point, that Harry knew that he had to deliver his own news, he looked at Dumbledore, and found that the man was deliberately looking at him, stopping everyone from leaving, and raising the expectation. He didn't disappoint.

"I must tell you, that once we defeat Voldemort I will not be coming back to Hogwarts and that in fact I am leaving Britain."

The explosion was even louder than when Dumbledore revealed his news, and this time he could actually see that Sirius wasn't screaming a joke, he like all others was asking why exactly he was saying that.

He tried to said something, but all of them seemed too focused on their screams to notice him trying to explain himself, again, only the sound of an explosion coming from Croaker seemed to calm them thanks to the surprise. He waited a few moments so he ears could stop that annoying sound, and when it did, he began to explain his decision.

"I am not under an obligation to answer your questions, yes, Sirius, Remus, even to you both. I have my own life, and I am tired of others dictating me from what I should do with it, to how I should do it. I had enough, I am tired of the hypocrisy of this place, loved one day, hated the next one. Much less I will become the clutch they call savior so they could live as they want while I sacrifice everything to conserve and protect a way of life that I have come to loathe."

He saw directly at Amelia, openly stating that something she had said had greatly annoyed him, and that his decision was in part based on that. The woman didn't cower or tried to ignore his glare, in fact she glared back at his insinuation, not willing to lose or accept any guilt at all. He smiled, then looked at Moody, then at Bill, Remus, Sirius and finally at Croaker, who remained silent the whole time.

Once he finally saw what he wanted, he said, with a hint of amusement on his voice.

"If you want to know why, exactly I am leaving, then I demand and oath, and even then what I will gave you is minimal at best. If you don't accept this, then be aware that you will get nothing from me. And I don't own you nothing much less I am in the obligation to answer your questions. In the end, it's my choice and yours what will mark our relationship from now on in the minimal chance that I could return to this place."

Nobody said anything, until Croaker raised his wand and immediately made an oath to not reveal what will be revealed here, under risk of losing his mind and magic. Once he finished, Harry looked at him, especially at the fact that the man has not specified anything else. It was vague at best, but the fact that he was the first to do so gained him some points.

Sirius followed his example, then Remus, Bill, Moody, Augusta and even grudgingly, Amelia. In the end all presents except Dumbledore made the oath. Augusta clearly noticed that.

"It seems that you are already under an oath, Dumbledore. Because I don't see you in any rush to do one... or I am wrong?"

The man nodded, then said:

"I am indeed under one, much more harsher than this one you have done. But seeing as I am not living much longer in this world, doing so again is counterproductive. But I am aware of Harry's secret, and I trust him completely."

Amelia sneered.

"You said the same thing about your DE pet, Dumbledore. So excuse me if that doesn't reassure me at all."

The man raised his shoulders, and said no more. Leaving the conversation at that point. Harry for his part simply sighed, almost feeling like he was looking at an older version of Daphne Greengrass.

"I will cut out the drama, I am not a pure wizard anymore, In fact I like Remus now fall into the category of creature. So do Hermione Granger, Luna Lovegood, Daphne Greengrass and Ron Weasley... sorry Bill. But that's the truth..."

The man nodded, apparently not that startled from the news as he expected him to be. That actually worried him a great deal, did the Twins share what he told them? Was his plan already ruined? His panic was probably visible, because the red head immediately reassured him.

"Is the first time I heard about it, Harry, but what my parents and Malfoy is sharing with the world sounds a great deal like a werewolf in action. It even happened close to a full moon. So I had my suspicions."

Remus immediately said.

"Why didn't you approach me about being bitten? When did this happen? We could have helped you know?"

Harry looked at him, and saw that he actually thought that he was another werewolf, he looked at the others here and they all seemed to have reached the same conclusion. He breathed with relief, his gamble has paid off way much than what he actually expected. He just needed to cement that notion into their skulls.

"It was Fenrir, I don't know how we are alive, especially as he had his pack with him. I guess he only wanted to play with us. Ron told us that Draco stupidly attacked him and he paid for that, with Ron and Daphne he took his sweet time, he dragged them to the forest and send a note, 'come with your Mud-blood and the lunatic to the forest or you will be getting your friends back, piece by piece'. I fell into his trap and the girls followed me. I tried to defeat him but he defeated me, played with me while his pack did the same with the girls. If it wasn't for Dumbledore intervention we would be rotting on the forest."

He looked at Dumbledore, who nodded, he even had a tiny little smile on his face that probably everyone mistook as one of amusement over the innocent actions of a little child. It wasn't meant to be sympathetic or denigrating. It was the tiny smile of a parent that was actually amused by the innocence displayed before him. With that everyone seemed to buy it, and he was set.

"You know Mister Potter that we could change the laws concerning werewolf, you don't need to left the school and the country..." Amelia seemed hell bent on preventing him from leaving the place. He smiled amused by her words. How careless of her to said something like that.

Thankfully, it was Remus who said it and not him.

"So Missus Bones, you are saying that only because the boy who lived become a werewolf, then the laws should be changed? Or are you implying that it was because of the boy who lived that said law should change?"

The woman frowned immediately, truly aware of the mistake she had made by her choice of words. How careless.

"I ask you to forgive me Remus, I wasn't thinking clearly..."

Sirius snorted, and said. "Clearly Amelia, and I believe for that exact reason is why my godchild is leaving this place. Not because of what you said, but to prevent the circus that this revelation would make of him. People will want to use him, so be it for good or bad. I think I understand his reasoning now."

She frowned but nodded, admitting her defeat then, what will she tell her niece?

Remus looked at Harry and firmly said.

"Wherever you go, I will go with you."

"So do I," added Sirius, with a huge smile on his face while doing so. Then he looked at Remus, frowning a little then asking. "I thought you were trying something with my cousin."

The ex-professor signed, and said: "It isn't working, Sirius, she's too young and I dare to say, naive. She's a really sweet woman. But our relationship is going nowhere. That and I feel a little uncomfortable with someone that looks like a younger version of her grandmother."

Sirius opened her mouth to say something, when it finally clicked how much little Nymphadora has inherited from his mother. He immediately shuddered at the mere thought. "You know, I was going to say that she can actually change her shape, but now that you said it, I can't get it out of my mind... curse you."

Remus chuckled: "Why do you think I have some reservations with her? Once I realized that it was impossible to get it out. Not mattering how hard I tried. The only way for me to actually notice her is for something tragic to happen that would let me devastated, then to said devastation add the pressure and fear of death thanks to the imminent war, and I could consider it, even do something so foolish as getting married in times of wars while believing that thanks to my condition I wouldn't live much longer. That is a sure way to begin a relationship, hell if she suddenly become pregnant I would run away from her scared and out of my mind."

Augusta looked at both of them with open contempt in her eyes. "You both are repulsive and a poor excuse of a man..." Amelia nodded while looking at them with something close to hatred. Both of them simply raised their shoulders in defeat and looked at Harry.

"So Harry, where do you plan to go, because wherever you go, we go with you..."

Dumbledore cleared his throat, trying to get the reunion back on its track.

"Leaving this aside, we must continue with our scheming, I don't have much time to toss aside easily so planning things carefully is a must. All of you here are especially aware that no plan survives contact with the enemy, so we must plan as carefully as we can, trying to thing the best way for this to work to our advantage..." He then looked at Augusta, who was firmly watching him, then he said: "That's when you come to the stage, Dame Longbottom, your presence alongside that of many of my Wizengamont colleagues will be present to finally give Lucius the title of Minister of Magic. But for that to happen the Wizengamont needs to vote, and before that happens I will have my chance to activate the ritual in front of them. But then it is needed the presence of Voldemort on the Wizengamont, his appearance is vital to my plans, as it will be his own curse that will end my life and his own in the process, repeating what many would believe was actually what happened that Halloween with Little Harry, of course, this time with greater consequences. It is at this point that you two will declare a vote and take the ministry by force if needed. Do not let it falls into the hand of another inept or corrupt. If we don't take our change there, we will never change our society for the better."

Amelia didn't liked at all what she was hearing, especially as it was against what she actually believed, but she as many here was tired of the bloodbath that had become their society. So something needed to be done or there will be nothing left to serve and protect.

"I guess that man was saying the truth, then... the road to hell is paved with good intentions."

Albus nodded, but firmly said, "Effectively, it is. But remember this, evil only triumphs when good people do nothing. And we have been doing nothing for too long, now it's time we change that. Even if history shall remember us for the blood that we will shed for the sake of our world."

**_To be concluded..._**

**_I was almost two lines about to reach the end of this story, then the power when out and with it my PC. When it come back my Libre Office decided to damage the file without remorse... the work of an entire week lost just like that._**

My eyes are killing me, my doctor said that I shoudln't be on a computer, but here I am. Trying to end this story. Losing the last chapter like that almost killed me there. I will try to end it as soon as I can, I just need to rest my eyes for a while because they HURT! I have the outline, but I lost my muse for the moment... let's hope I get it back soon.  



End file.
